Demons Hour (NatsuxOCxSting)
by o0Aella0o
Summary: Before the team with a celestial wizard, there was another. She, first real friend of Natsu, one day vanishes. His heart torn, he moves on each day, little bits of her falling away forever. She, however, starts to rebuild herself piece by piece and soon, she is reborn as a demon, back and thirsty for blood and power.
1. Festival of Mistakes

A/N  
Hello to anyone who has stumbled onto this fic! This story is on another website ( ), but I wanted to move it over here to reach out to more people. This story is a little different from the one on quotev. It's edited a bit and I may have a little more. The plotline is still the same. You can read the story here or you can go to the link over here - story/4907086/Demons-Hour

It was a gorgeous, sunny day with puffy clouds floating across the bright sky. Inside the Fairy Tail guild, a young Natsu was head to head with Gray challenging him to a fight. Erza and Mirajane had their foreheads pressed together daring each other to make the first move, while Cana was sitting quietly at a table sorting her cards. This was years ago before Lucy had come to Fairy Tail.

This was the start of something terrifying that would haunt Earthland's history.

"Natsu! Fighting Gray again?" a voice called teasingly from the large oak doors. Natsu stopped scuffling with Gray and turned around. At the doorway was a tiny girl with long blond hair flowing down to her hip. She had had large purple eyes that gleamed playfully and a smile that could light up the entire city of Magnolia. She beamed at everyone while walking to where Gray and Natsu were fighting. "I thought you promised me you weren't going to fight. You know fighting only brings-"

"Bloodshed, hate, painful scars, etc," Natsu said, finishing the sentence for her. "Zeyla, I think I had this lecture at least a million times."

Zeyla frowned. "It's only been 1,246 times. I've been counting."

Natsu shook his head. She would never understand.

Natsu's mind drifted off to a world where Zeyla would finally understand the point of a battle. Even though he wouldn't say it out loud in her face, he would have to admit that she wasn't what most would call a qualified mage. She didn't have an identified magic power yet. The only reason that Gramps had let her into the guild was because she was on death's door when they found her bleeding in the streets during a thunderstorm. In the time she was recovering, she had managed to charm the entire guild and they allowed her to stay. In that time too, Natsu had become extremely close to her and they became the best of friends. They shared everything with each other, exchanging laughs and tears. She was the only person other than Erza that could stop him and Gray from fighting.

Suddenly, Natsu jumped back from the sudden movement in his face.

"Hullo squinty eyes? You still there? Or are you off to Lala Land dreaming about someone?" Zeyla said, smirking.

"I was not dreaming about Lisanna! I don't even like her!" Natsu snapped back.

Zeyla laughed at her friend's stupidity. "I never said anything about Lisanna. You said that yourself," said Zeyla. Her eyes narrowed in mischief as Natsu's face turned a beet red.

"Catch me if you can!" she yelled over shoulder as she began running.

Natsu started screaming, "I do not like Lisanna! I am so gonna beat you up once I get my hands on you!"

"Then catch me. I doubt you can!" Zeyla called over to her friend.

The entire guild of Fairy Tail froze and watched as the two children ran around the guild chasing each other. Erza shook her head, "They are so immature running and teasing each other like that."

Mirajane turned around with a scowl on her face. "Oh really Erza? You shouldn't be talking, Miss I'm-gonna-destroy-everything-in-my-path."

Erza jumped up to face Mirajane. "Is that right Prettyface? You seem to be like that too. You want to fight?"

Mirajane smirked. "You're on."

Suddenly, a huge shadow fell onto the guild hall. "Is this fighting I am hearing?" a huge voice boomed. The entire guild of Fairy Tail turned to the voice and shrunk back. Natsu and Zeyla stopped chasing each other and looked up with a little bit of fear. Then, with a quick pop, the large shadow diminished into a man no bigger than the size of two beer bottles.

"Well at least let me join!"

"Gramps!" Natsu exclaimed. "Of course you can join." Master stood back up to his full height and yelled in Natsu's face, "Of course not, you dense boy! The Magnolia Harvest Festival is tonight. I am not going to have a beat-up guild on a holiday. Understood everyone? Especially you, Natsu."

Natsu just grinned and turned to Zeyla. "Aye, Zeyla you want to go to the festival with me tonight? It's your first year after all."

Zeyla's smile wavered a bit as if was hesitating. Something was holding her back from saying yes, but the worry that appeared on her face soon disappeared as fast as it came. "Sure Natsu! Just come over later!"

She then quickly turned around and ran out of the guild. Tears created a path, trailing where she ran. Natsu tilted his head. Why was she so upset when invited to the festival?

* * *

The sun had started to set, and everything was bathed in the golden half-light. Lights were starting to flicker on as the sky became darker and darker.

Natsu stood at the door of a apartment. Just as he was about to kick the door open, it opened to reveal a tall woman with pink hair. The woman frowned. "Natsu, how many times do I have to tell you? No kicking down the door to get in. I had to replace the door at least six times already. And that was just you. I'm not counting the time you brought over an explosive plant. Or the time you and Gray started fighting in front of the doorstep. Or the time Erza decided to impale you with her sword and missed and hit my door instead."

Natsu scuffed the ground and turned his head sheepishly. "Sorry. I'm just excited to go to the festival tonight. Gramps said the floats this year are gonna be better than last year. Zeyla has to see it since this is her first year. So is she here?"

The woman smiled at his childish heart. "Come in, Natsu. She's still in her room, so you can wait in the kitchen."

"Yeah!" Natsu yelled. He rushed through the door and into the kitchen. It was a cozy home, the typical family house. Windows were covered with lace curtains on every wall. A round wooden table stood at the center with a white cloth covering the top and two chairs.

"Natsu Dragneel," a cute voice drawled from behind him.

He turned to see Zeyla at the bottom of the stairs. She was wearing a short white dress with cute yellow daises sewn on the hem of the dress. Hands on her hips, she struck a pose. "Like it?" she asked.

Natsu rolled his eyes. "Oh yes, your majesty. I love it. It is the most beautiful thing my eyes have laid on. The white color of-"

"Natsu, don't be mean," Zeyla said with a frown. "Or else . . ."

"Or else what?"

"I'll take your scarf!" Zeyla yelled. Natsu's eyes widened. This was the only thing left that reminded him of Igneel. He had never taken this scarf off, nor was he planning to any time soon. Zeyla giggled. "I'm just joking. I know how important that scarf is to you. Oh, by the way, I got something for you. You wait here. I need to get it."

Zeyla ran back up the stairs and left Natsu standing at the base of the stairs wondering why Zeyla would get him a gift. The festival wasn't this special like Christmas. It wasn't his birthday either. His head was spinning from the thinking he was doing. Why the heck would Zeyla get him a gift? Zeyla soon came thundering down the stairs with her hands behind her back.

"Close your eyes," she demanded. Natsu obeyed and shut his eyes. He could feel her warm, tiny fingers brush across his neck and something settled near the top of his chest. "Ok, you can open your eyes now!"

Natsu opened his eyes and saw Zeyla pointing at his neck. "Look at it!"

Natsu lifted the chain of the necklace and peered at the pendent. It was a silver dragon with its tail wrapped around a glowing red-orange crystal.

"It's sort of like a mood necklace," Zeyla explained. "But it can give you energy boosts as long as you believe in yourself and the value of friendship. When you do, it glows a red orange-y yellow color. But when you don't, it changes to a black. Don't let that happen, promise?"

Natsu smiled at the gift, "I promise, Zeyla, but I have a question. Why did you give this me? The festival isn't even supposed to be about gift giving.""

Zeyla frowned. "Natsu, this was the day we promised to be best friends forever, remember?"

Natsu's eyes widened and his face paled. Zeyla sighed and shook her head. Natsu started frantically waving his hands in front of him. "I'm sorry! Agh, how did I forget? I'll make it up to you; I promise!"

"Natsu!" Zeyla bawled. "How could you forget?"

"I'm so sorry. Please, I'll do anything!" Natsu begged.

Zeyla grinned and wiped her tears. "Gotcha!" she said, grinning.

Natsu pouted and said, "It's not fair. You can fake cry so easily, you could trick anyone."

"That's why you love me!" Zeyla smiled cheekily. "Come on Natsu, let's go now. I don't want to miss the festival. It's my first year after all!" Zeyla ran out the door and into the brightly light town of Magnolia.

"Zeyla! Wait for me!" Natsu shouted. Zeyla just laughed, and Natsu had to grin. This is why he was best friends with Zeyla. She could make you smile no matter what the mood was.

The pair walked through the streets gazing at everything from the food to all the goods that traders were trying to sell them. Zeyla then stopped at a stand and seemed to look at something longer than the others.

"What is it, Zey?" asked Natsu.

Zeyla just shook her head. "It's nothing…." She said trailing off.

"Come on just tell me." Natsu begged. Zeyla didn't say anything but pointed to necklace. The necklace was like a compass with four arrows pointing in the cardinal directions. At the center of the compass was a shining blue jewel the color of the sea.

"Oooh, it's pretty. You wanted it? Here, I'll buy it for you, this way; I will have gotten you something for today!" Natsu exclaimed. Zeyla shook her head and pointed to the price tag.

"7,000 jewels! That is outrageous!" Natsu screeched. Zeyla smiled.

"It's fine. You don't have to get me anything. You're my friend, you're my gift."

Natsu just grabbed the seller by the collar and pulled him behind the stand and whispered in his ear. The seller frowned and Natsu whispered some more. The seller nodded and Natsu handed him some money and the seller handed over the necklace.

"Natsu, what did you say?" Zeyla questioned.

"Not much. All that matters is that you have the necklace now, right?" Natsu said with a smile.

"WOAH." He gasped as Zeyla slammed him with a hug. "Thank you." She whispered.

Natsu and Zeyla started making their way to the floats. Squeezing through the crowd, they were able to get into the front and were able to see the floats clearly. "Look at that one Natsu." Zeyla exclaimed.

"Hmm?" Natsu turned his head and the sight wanted to make him gag. The float was all pink with white lace. Red hearts covered the rim and roses were being thrown from it. On it were three girls doing a dance routine which all whom were dressed in hot pink. The sight made him feel like he was on a train.

"That," he said motioning to the float, "makes me want to throw up."

Zeyla doubled over. "You look like you're on transportation, Natsu. I don't get it, why can't you handle transportation."

Natsu started to feel his blood boil. He hated talking about his fear of transportation. It was a dumb weakness that he liked to avoid talking about. Zeyla would always tease him about it, but this time he just snapped.

"Well I'm sorry if I can't handle transportation. At least I'm not scared of the dumb moon. What have you got against it anyway? You hardly come out at night and whenever someone mentions the moon you get annoyed and scared. You're such a weakling always hiding from it. What are you going to do when you reach your teen years? You can't stay in Fairy Tail. It's for wizards only. You'll be worthless."

He saw Zeyla stiffen as if he hit a sensitive spot. "Serves her right. You shouldn't go teasing people about their fears." Natsu thought with satisfaction. Zeyla's lips moved and she mumbled something. "What did you say? I can't hear you." Natsu said.

Zeyla spun around with her eyes were full of tears and fists clenched.

"I said you have no idea what you're talking about!" She screamed, "You have no right to say that!"

Suddenly the entire town was quiet, all listening to the exchange happening between the two young children.

"YOU SAY YOU'RE MY FRIEND? A FRIEND WOULD BE ABLE TO KNOW WHY I'M AFRAID OF THE MOON, WHY I HATE IT, BUT YOU OBVIOUSLY DON'T. YOU EVEN FORGOT THIS DAY. FORGET THAT PROMISE NATSU." Zeyla raised her hands above her head and brought them down, "MOON SHARDS!"

The moonlight that fell on the street was suddenly turned into daggers and they flew at Natsu with incredible speed. They sliced his face and his arms spilling blood. Zeyla didn't even look back. She ran out of the town. The townspeople started to go after her but she stomped on the ground and the moon light made a wall. She then stopped and slowly tuned around. Zeyla crossed her arms then swung them to her sides. Natsu started to feel something creeping up his legs. In horror, he looked down and saw that whit vines were creeping up his legs prohibiting him from moving.

"Zeyla, wait I didn't mean it. I was just angry, I didn't mean it. Zeyla please wait!"

It was no use. Zeyla was already swallowed up by the dark forest.


	2. Full Moon's Nighmare

The trees covered all light from the moon making the forest floor a pitch black. Zeyla's tiny feet slammed on the dirt ground as she tried to put as much distance from her and the stupid, heartless dragon slayer. The tears streamed down her face and splattered down to the ground.

She angrily wiped them away. She shouldn't be crying over someone not worth it. Natsu's words echoed in her ears.

 _"Weakling, worthless, hiding."_

She clutched her head trying to shake the words out, trying to stop the tears from flowing.

Finally stopping when her legs couldn't bring her further, Zeyla started climbing a tree. The rough bark scratched her arms and bare feet spilling blood and staining her pure white dress but she didn't care. All the physical pain was masked by her anger and betrayal. Finally reaching the top of the tree, she rested herself of the topmost branch.

She tilted her head and looked at the sky. It was shining brightly with the stars twinkling around the big, bright full moon. " _Oh the moon_ ", Zeyla thought, " _All you have brought me is pain. Every night you have brought me guilt and nightmares. Never have you brought me a happy day_."

Zeyla tilted her head back in laughter as something changed in her. The laughter changed to a cackle. Her eyes suddenly lost all her warmth and kindness and now were dark and lacking emotion. The tears suddenly stopped and she sat up and smiled evilly.

"Natsu," she said howling at the moon, "Feel my pain. See my nightmares; let your body shake in my despair; let your suffering begin!"

Zeyla skillfully jumped down from the branch she was perched in. One of her hands created a fist and she slammed into the palm of her other hand. "Full Moons Nightmare!" She screamed. Dark purple seals surrounded Zeyla as she yelled. The force of the spell made her hair blow upwards with her dress. Black mist surrounded her and began bleaching her hair of its golden color and the dress of its white purity. Her fist loosened and both her hands pointed out the middle and pointer finger. She thrust them toward the shining lights of the festival.

Zeyla had now suddenly changed. Her hair was now silver that hung like a sheet covering her face. The white dress that she once wore was replaced by a black one that went down to the floor. She now also wore a white cape with golden stenciling around the hem.

"Shake him with fear until he collapses on the floor screaming with mercy." She screeched. "Make him beg for forgiveness".

"Tremble in my nightmares Natsu." She whispered. With that, she swept her cape and walked deeper into the dark forest.  
 **  
Natsu's POV**

Natsu stood in shock as he saw Zeyla run into the forest, crying. His head bowed in shame, not even bothering to wipe the blood off his face, not that he could. The moonlight vines restricted any movement and any movement would cause more pain.

The moonlight stung his wounds making them smoke like they were being burned.

" Natsu, get out of the light, it's making your cuts worse." Erza called.

" I dunno Erza, I think I want to stay in this position where I feel like I'm dying." Natsu said sarcastically. Erza raised an eyebrow as if she didn't catch the sarcasm.

"Of course I want to get out of here. I can't though cause of these stupid light vine thingys. AGH ERZA WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

Erza had started to swing her sword at Natsu. He closed his eyes expecting to die but instead he heard a clang. He slowly opened his eyes and saw that Erza was whacking away at the vines.

Suddenly Erza flew back and her sword skittered on the stone ground. The vines on Natsu's feet and arms were still being clung by the moonlight vines. Not a single dent was made.

" Arrggh!" Erza growled. She picked up her sword and charged at Natsu again.

"Wait Erza!" Natsu cried out, panicking, "Don't do it, I don't think it'll work! Just wait until day when there isn't any moonlight. Maybe the vines will disappear by then."

Erza nodded if she understood. "It's because there isn't any more moon light to power the vines. The wall around Magnolia will probably be gone by the time the sun rises and the moon is gone. I'm guessing your cuts will be healed too, hopefully."

"Just leave me here. You guys can go home. I need time to think." Natsu said. The guild and all the other people started to file away when Mirajane stiffened.

"Something's coming with a huge magic presence." As soon as the words left Marianne's mouth, a black mist started pouring into the towns. It filled up the alleyways and the streets. Both people and wizards started panicking, all running for shelter away from the mist. However, the black mist avoided all of them like it was looking for one thing. Finally, the mist stopped where Natsu was tied up at.

Natsu's eyes widened in fear as it loomed over him. A shadow stepped over him now. He looked up and saw Lisanna standing in front of, her Takeover making her a bird.

"No Lisanna! Don't!" Natsu yelled warning her. It didn't matter; the mist crept forward and went through her. Nothing happened at first, but soon her Takeover started to disappear. Astonished, Lisanna looked at her hands like she couldn't believe what just had happened. Suddenly hearing a howl from behind her, she turned around.

Natsu had collapsed on the ground, his bindings gone, but he wasn't running away. The mist had engulfed him and he was clutching his head screaming. Natsu kept screaming, but there were no wounds, all the cuts had healed and the blood was all gone. He was now screaming out in the fear and pain of his nightmares.

 _He was gone. His father was gone. Igneel was gone. The rain had started to pour down so Natsu headed back to the cave. Something was wrong, he could feel it. As soon as he entered the cave, he noticed that Igneel was missing. Days passed, and then weeks, his dragon father never came back. Then as he was sitting in his cave, he saw Igneel flying in the sky. "Igneel!" He called out. His tiny fingers reached for the sky in desperation, hoping somehow he could pull his father out of the sky. But Igneel just dissolved along with the cave._

 _He was suddenly on the bottom of the hill and he saw a figure shining the moonlight. It was Zeyla._

 _"Z! It's me Natsu! Look I'm sorry for what I said. I didn't mean it. Zeyla please turn around and hear me out."_

 _The figure turned and Natsu stepped back in shock. Half of her face and body was covered in dripping blood. And her eyes were a dead black with no life. Her once shining blond hair was now a mess with some of it pulled out. She started to laugh revealing razor sharp teeth, just like a wolf._

 _"Hello Natsu. Long time no see. Like it?" Zeyla cackled motioning to herself._

 _Natsu started repeatedly shaking his head, not believing what he saw in front of him. "You're not Zeyla; you're some kind of monster. Zeyla would never look like this."_

 _Zeyla giggled and soon it turned into a maniac's laughter. "Oh Natsu, how could you say that. Of course it's me. Don't you recognize me? After all, you were the one who made me into this. You made me into a monster that is going to come back for revenge. You hurt me and shunned me and I'm going to come back, not only for you but for the whole guild. You better watch out Natsu, everywhere and anytime. I'm gonna hurt you back."_

 _"You aren't Zeyla. And you can't hurt me." Natsu said his voice shaking._

 _"Oh yes I can. You know, nightmares can be as real as life." Zeyla growled. She than tilted her head to the moon and howled. Her hands turned into claws and her back sprouted wings. "It seems tonight my claws are going to get dirty on your blood, Natsu." She jumped up and started to fly towards him. She lifted her hands and slashed across his face and body. Then she pulled his face in close to hers, "Don't you forget me Natsu, I'll be visiting you every full moon so you better watch out."_

The people in the town only saw Natsu withering on the ground screaming out someone's name, but no sound had came out. Then blood appeared on his face and body.

"NATSU!" Lisanna yelled. She started towards him but Mirajane held out her arm and blocked her and shook her head. The guild of Fairy Tail could only watch in horror as curled up in pain, grabbing his head, and screaming over and over again, all trapped in the mist. The mist finally started to fade away and Natsu lay still on the ground, barely even breathing.

A tear slipped from his eye, mixing with the blood and he whispered three words, "I'm sorry Zeyla."


	3. Zeref and Memories

Tired from casting such a strong spell, Zeyla had started to shuffle with her head down. The only thing that kept her body moving was energy from the moonlight. Finally arriving at a tree, she sat down exhausted. She could still feel her power coursing through her body, waiting to be used, but she couldn't risk it, afraid that all the magic would burn her up.

 _"_ _You have to keep going. Get as far away from him as possible. Prove to him that he is wrong, that you are more powerful than him."_ Zeyla thought.

Pulling herself from the ground, she continued to journey, walking farther and farther away from the guild she hated so much. Zeyla then stopped. She could feel someone or something extremely powerful near her.

"Come out. I know you're here. Face me if you dare." She challenged the shadow. No one answered. Zeyla closed her eyes and allowed her senses to wander. Something was above her, watching her every movement.

She raised her arm and opened her palm. Across it danced ghost white flames. She threw it at the surrounding trees and the flames started to quickly consume the trunk, letting the trees fall down to the ground with a boom.

Leaping down from one of the branches was a young man with messy black hair and dark eyes. He was wearing a high collared black robe with gold trimmings. "Who are you?" Zeyla asked with no fear in her voice.

"Such a demanding voice for one so young. It doesn't quite match your face." The man responded in a dangerous whisper.

"Who are you? I'm not going to ask twice." Zeyla snapped.

"Impatient are you?" The man said with a light laugh, "I am surprised you don't recognize me. My name is Zeref."

Zeyla took a step back, her eyes revealing fear and anger. "You're the one that destroyed my town. You're the one that created the demon to do that. You made me kill my own parents when I was trying to save them. You're worse than those demons themselves!" Zeyla said.

Zeref bowed his head in realization of his crimes, "I know. That is why I need you. I need you to kill me."

Thoughts raced through Zeyla's head as she tried to comprehend what Zeref was trying to tell her. He wanted her to kill him? He was the strongest wizard ever in the history of magic. How was she supposed to kill him?

"I know what you're thinking. You are not ready. I will teach you my magic, The Black Arts. Perhaps when you are ready, then you will be able to erase me from existence. You already have a enormous magic capability. " Zeref explained.

All that Zeyla could manage were a few words, "Why me?" She croaked out.

"I had a vision of you along with someone else taking me down. I have searched for awhile. I sent my minion to look for you, but it got of control and destroyed your town. I understand of you do not want to be trained by me, but this is for the sake of humanity. More years into the future and a guild will be looking for me so they can use my powers and reach the One Magic," Zeref pleaded, "This cannot happen. Learn from me than destroy me with what magic abilities you have. Please for the sake of humanity."

Zeyla stood unmoving. Her face flashed many emotion, first fear then uncertainty, then anger. "I will do this. Not because I want to save you or the world, but to get my revenge."

Zeref nodded. "If that is what you wish, but you must swear to destroy me once you are capable of it."

Raising her right hand and placing it across her heart Zeyla said, "I swear I will."

 **Natsu's POV**

Natsu's eyes slowly opened and he was blinded by the bright lights. His head pounded like he had just gotten hit there. Sunlight poured through the window, illuminating the dust that as floating in the air. He slowly sat up and rubbed his eyes, trying to ignore the soreness that screamed from every part of his body.

"Where am I?" Natsu said faintly.

"Natsu! You're alive! You've been out for about four days. After you got stuck in the mist and you didn't wake up, the entire guild was freaking out cause they thought you died." It was Lisanna.

Natsu's mind throbbed as he tried to remember. He bolted straight up. "Zeyla! Where's Zeyla. I saw her on a hill. Is she I here? Lisanna, what's wrong?"

Lisanna looked down and looked like she was about to cry. She shook her head to say she wasn't going to say anything, "I'll let Gramps tell you." She said sadly. Lisanna held out a hand and helped him out of the bed.

Natsu looked at his body. It was almost all covered in bandages from head to toe. "I look like a mummy." He said joking.

"You have no idea," Lisanna said, "We almost lost you a few times. You were on deaths door."

Oh was the only word Natsu could make out. Lisanna guided Natsu out of the infirmary and into the guild hall.

"NATSU!" Everyone exclaimed. Almost everyone showed their relief when they saw that Natsu was still alive and well and he wasn't killed by the mist that had appeared so suddenly.

"How are you feeling Natsu?" Master asked warily.

"Fine, just a little beat up and sore, but otherwise I'm fine. Where's Zeyla? Lisanna said that you would tell me."  
Master started to speak, carefully picking each word he was going to speak, "Zeyla is not here with us right now or maybe forever. I'm afraid she isn't going to come back."

Natsu frowned not quite getting what Master was saying, "Sooo she ran away? I thought she just needed some time to cool. I didn't make her that upset did I? I need to apologize to her."

Master shook his head, "I mean she's _gone._ Like forever."

Natsu furrowed his eyebrows, "I still don't get it."

Lisanna burst into the silence, "Oh Natsu you're so dense. Zeyla's dead."  
Natsu's body became rigid. _Zeyla's dead. Zeyla's dead. Zeyla's dead._ The words kept echoing in his mind. His body went in shock.

"How?" He hoarsely whispered. Master bowed his head.

"Her dress blew into the town later. It was shredded and covered in blood. Her body was found a few days later. She was gotten by the wolves. Her entire body was covered in claw marks. I'm sorry Natsu."

Natsu fell to his knees in shock. It was like his nightmare was coming true. Zeyla was dead and reborn as a monster. "This is my fault. This is all my fault."

"No it's not Natsu. It's Zeyla's fault. She was the one who got angry and attacked you. She shouldn't have run off like that." Lisanna piped up.

"No, you don't understand." Natsu whispered shaking his head. Bits of the puzzle were now coming together. The moon was the key to her past. Most of it didn't make much sense yet, but Natsu now understood.

"This is my fault. This is all my fault." Natsu said, repeating the words over and over again. _All my fault. All my fault._

 _Time Skip 3 months_

The snow drifted down to the ground freezing Natsu from head to toe. In his hand was a bouquet of white roses. He slowly trudged out of the city of Magnolia and into the forest. Natsu followed the trail that he had blazed throughout the many times he ventured into forest. The full moon shone down onto his back creating a faint shadow. It was full moon, the time of the month that Natsu feared the most. He stopped by a willow that grew near the bank of the frozen river. He bowed his head. Near the base of the willow was a pure white stone with words engraved on it.

 _Here lies Zeyla_  
 _  
A girl that was precious to everyone_  
 _  
A girl who valued life_  
 _  
A girl who found the light in the darkness_

He stared at the words for while, then cleared his throat. "Hi Zeyla. Another visit." Natsu grimaced, "I can't ever sleep on full moons you know. The nightmares of you and my past keep haunting me. Guess that's my punishment huh? I'm sorry I turned you into a monster. You were right, I was never you're real friend. Gray is still stripping and Erza still the devil if you want to know."

"I guess what I just wanted to say, I'm still sorry for that night. I can't get myself to forgive myself. I don't think you would ever forgive me either. I've always wondered why roses were your favorite. I figured out today."

 _Flashback_

 _"_ _Natsu wait up. I wanna go to the meadow." Zeyla cried. She started running, letting her golden hair stream out of its braid._

 _"_ _Then hurry up." Natsu yelled back. The two ran in the streets of the city and made their way to the meadow. The sky was a clear blue and a light breeze made the long grass rustle._

 _Natsu turned around and waited for Zeyla to catch up. "Slowpoke." He said teasing Zeyla. Zeyla just pouted. Then her eyes lit up. She pointed to something behind Natsu._

 _"_ _Look, it's a rosebush! I've never seen one in the wild before."_

 _Natsu turned and saw a bush filled with white roses. The roses seemed to glow with a holy light. Butterflies flickered in and out of the petals, sipping the sweet nectar. Natsu reached out one hand and stroked a velvety petal._

 _"_ _The butterflies are beautiful right? Their wings are amazing; they can fly anywhere with them. They don't have to stay in one place forever, they can just fly away whenever." Zeyla said dreamily while looking at the sky_

 _Natsu rolled his eyes, "Why would you want to that?" He said snorting. Zeyla paid no attention to his comment._

 _"_ _I wonder what it's like to be absolutely free."_

 _Free..._

 _Free…_

 _Free…_

 _Flashback end_

"You wanted to be free." Natsu murmured, "Just like the butterflies in the white roses. You wanted to feel free." He placed the roses on the grave. "I hope you like these. They're from the bush in the meadow. I think you're free now." He held out a hand and touched the grave and held it there for a few moments. He pulled back his hand and brought it to his neck were a scar was. He touched it remembering the pain from the moon shards. "Good-bye." He whispered.

Natsu turned and started to walk back to the city. His grief caused him to miss the scent of another person directly above in the willow tree. The person had watched the entire time that Natsu was there.

"I'm not free Natsu." The figure growled, "You're still dragging me down to the ground."


	4. Past, Present, and Future

"You have now completely mastered the Black Arts and Death Magic. You need to do your duty you promised me three months ago." Zeref announced after they had finished training.

"I'm not ready yet. I've only trained for three months and all I know is that magic. I need to know how to do other magic like all the other Dragon Slayer Magic and maybe mind-reading or maybe-"

"No, you are ready." Zeref cut through, "You need to do it now."

Zeyla shook her head, "I'm not ready yet. I promised I would when I could, but not yet. I have to master other magic before I'm ready to ... let you pass away. Please let me travel and learn other magic. I promise I will come back and finish my promise when I am ready."

Zeref bowed his head and Zeyla waited silently. He rose his head and Zeyla took a step back. Zeref's eyes were now a bright red and his pupils were rimmed in black. "You didn't keep your promise. You swore that you would. Leave now before I kill you. Before my anger unleashes."

Zeyla stood her ground. "No, I will not be kicked away like trash again."

"LEAVE." Zeref screamed at her. Zeyla did not move a muscle and stood where she was.

"I refuse to be scared out of my training." She hissed. Around Zeref, a black mist started to form around him.

 _"Death wave."_ Zeyla instantly thought. She leaped up and spread out her black wings she had gained through Area magic.

Zeref then held out his hand and a black orb appeared. Chucking it in Zeyla's direction, Zeyla could only fly out of the way. She then swept both her arms in a circular direction until the bottom of her hands meet.

"Death Pillar!" Zeyla shouted.

Zeref than crossed his arms in front of him and created a black shield, but the force of the spell had pushed him back a good hundred feet.

"You know," Zeyla snarled, "A teacher attacking their student isn't very noble."

Zeref stood up and brushed the dirt and grit from his knees. He held out his arm. Zeyla stepped forward, or at least she tried to. "Bastard! You dare immobilize me?" She spat out.

She closed her eyes and concentrated. "Open gate of the Moon Howler, Luna!"

The sound of bells chiming filled the air. A brilliant light blinded Zeref. When the light had died down, another being was next to Zeyla. It was a young woman with long gray-blue hair tied in loose ponytail. On her head was golden circlet. She had both wolf ears and a wolf tail. The woman was also wearing a white toga belted together with a black sash. On her ankle, arm and forehead bore red tattoos. In her hand was a silver spear.

"Go Luna. Attack him and set me free from the spell." Zeyla yelled at the woman.

Luna nodded and sprung at Zeref and drove the spear into Zeref's hands. He yelped in pain and the force that was holding Zeyla stopped.

Zeyla slammed her fist one on top of the other. "Take some of your own medicine _Master."_ Zeyla roared, "Moon Poison."

Nothing happened. "Fool," Zeref said, "The moon isn't out. You can't do that magic."

Zeyla smirked, "The moon is always out. It just can't be seen during the day."

A silver mist started to form around Zeref. He tried to claw out of it and escape but the mist moved with him. "Don't worry," Zeyla said, "It won't kill you. It will just make the rest of your life extremely painful. You know you should pay more attention to your pupils. I can't believe you never noticed me sneaking out at night and practicing magic. Or maybe going to the library. I mastered all mimic magic, so powerful, instead of just mimicking it, it becomes my magic. Or how about the time we went to the mountains and I ran off. It wasn't to explore, it was the find the diamond keys that were all hidden in the heart of the mountain."

Zeref just grunted.

"You are so blind. Of course I'm going to kill you. I've hated you always, but when you decided to train me, it was like a dream come true. I get to avenge my parents not to mention obtain magic powerful enough to open the gates of all the legendary keys _and_ unlock the gate to ultimate magic."

Zeref's eyes widened at the words Zeyla had uttered, "How did you know about that?" He croaked out.

"Some reading here and there in the oldest books in the library not to mention the book that you keep in the secret compartment underneath your bed. You never could achieve that could you? You had the magic capability but not the gemstones. I'm going to change that and get all the gems. I know where all of them are. After hours of research, I finally discovered where each is hidden. I will become the most powerful being ever!" Zeyla cackled.

"Good-bye Zeref. I hope we meet again someday in the future."

* * *

Zeyla walked away from the grassy plains and into the forest. She smiled at her power. Zeref was so stupid and clueless. During all the trips to the ancient and sacred temples, she had gained many weapons, like swords and staffs, and keys, not to mention books that had taught her forbidden magic or ancient magic.

She laughed. Other people were so dumb. They thought that there were only gold and silver keys but Zeyla knew better. There were diamond, emerald, ruby, and others with gemstones. The most powerful were the original element keys: Earth, Fire, Water, and Air. She only had water, but Zeyla had already gotten most of the gemstone keys.

"I need to open the gate to the ultimate magic. I need more people to help me." She could feel someone staring at the back of her neck. Zeyla took a deep breath and allowed her senses to wander in the surrounding area. She could sense that two boys about her age, hidden behind the bushes watching her.

She raised her voice, "You can come out. I know you're there." There was not response from the bush. Zeyla narrowed her eyes. If they wanted to play that game, it was fine with her. "Get out now, "She said, her voice sharper with more authority, "Or I'm going to set the bush on fire."

To prove her point, her fist was now in ghost-white flames. The bush rustled and two boys stepped out. One had messy white hair and golden eyes. The other had golden blonde hair and purple eyes. Each was trembling in front of Zeya. They both had bruises and scars on their bodies and had a haunted and hunted look in their eyes.

Zeyla stared at them reading their memories. It wasn't hard as most people didn't know how to close their minds. Images flashed by. Zeyla saw flames on buildings and smoke. Screams of terror could be heard throughout. She was in a village. Nearby was demon 5 stories high, stomping on people and torching houses.

 _She could see the two boys huddled together on the streets while a woman was in front of them shielding them._

 _"Momma, I'm scared." The one with blonde hair whimpered._

 _"It's going to be ok. You stay here and protect your brother okay?" The woman said smiling. The boy nodded and clutched his brother harder. The woman ran through the demolished streets and faced the demon. She crossed her hands in front of her and golden light surrounded her. She slowly brought her hands together and she aimed at the demon. The golden light flew toward the demons heart._  
 _The light pierced the demon and the demon started to crumble._

 _"Momma!" The boy yelled. He rushed to his mother's side. "Momma you did it. The demons died. You're okay now. Momma? Momma, wake up!"_

 _The boy shook his mother's shoulders but he only saw his mother's lifeless glassy eyes._

 _"Momma! You can't leave us! You just defeated the monster. You won, now get up, you're okay."_

 _The woman did not move. "MOMMA!" The boy screamed. Tears slipped out from his eyes. "Please Momma." He whispered._

Zeyla opened her eyes and she gave an all over look of the boys.

"You're mother died protecting you right?" She asked bluntly.

Both the boys stiffened. The older boy than spoke. "How did you know?"

"I read your memories. The mind is a very open thing unless you know how to close it." Zeyla replied simply, "Don't worry, I never had any parents. I was thrown out twice by my best friend and by my teacher." She held out a hand, "My name is Zeyla. Zeyla Amador."

The boy with the blonde hair cautiously reached for it and shook it, "My name is Hikumu Crosswell. This," he said motioning to the boy with white hair, "Is my younger brother Juden." He then hesitated, "Why are you being so nice to us all of a sudden?"

The edges of Zeyla's mouth tugged upwards, "You're just like me. Abandoned. I suppose you want to get revenge on the demon? We people need to stay together. We understand each other. Join me, Hikumu. We can be a family, or a guild. A guild where there is no abandonment."

Hikumu smiled. "I don't know what to say."

For the first time in a long time, Zeyla's eyes softened and she smiled for real. "Don't be afraid. A family will always be there for you, just like your mother."

Hikumu lowered his eyes remembering his mother's sacrifice. He then raised them. "I want to join."


	5. The Moon

Zeyla looked at the flickering fire that lit up the darkness. Around her were screams of laughter and faces filled with smiles. This was her guild that she made, Demons Hour. Many in the guild never knew the true meaning behind the name but Zeyla, Hikumu, and Juden did. It came from the past where demons haunted their memories every moment they breathed.

She had to smile. Her guild consisted of thirteen members, including her. _"The unlucky number."_ Zeyla thought.

The guild mark was like a clock, a hand pointing to a specific hour. The most powerful member had the twelfth hour hand, the next most powerful had the eleventh hour and so four most powerful members had another guild mark.

The mark was a compass and the four strongest guild members had the compass mark indicating they were in an elite group called the Compass Rose. The strongest of the four had the arrow pointing north highlighted. The next had west, and so forth till the weakest had the arrow pointing east highlighted.

As guild master, Zeyla had both marks entirely highlighted in gold. The Demons Hour mark was on her upper arm and the Compass Rose mark was on the side of her neck.

She stared at the flame and fingered the necklace that Natsu had given her a few years back at the Festival. She smiled. The gift was more than just a necklace. It was a guide to the location of the gate of ultimate power. The necklace would point to where they needed to be headed.

Zeyla looked up and saw new family. They were all unique in their magic, but they all had one thing in common: the lack of love. All of the guild members were abandoned, ignored or thrown out. They were beat to the ground called evil and useless. Zeyla had traveled the kingdom and had met all the members and they connected. Eventually, Hikumu had suggested they start a guild.

Zeyla at first resisted the idea but then reluctantly agreed after everyone else started begging her to do so. They made a dark guild, not wanting to go through all the paperwork. But they were indeed what others would call evil. They had crushed old guilds that once had hurt their family. Most people in the guild didn't survive or the guild hall was burnt down.

Revenge was basically the guild law. It powered their magic. All the people in the guild were even more powerful than the Ten Wizard Saints. Zeyla and Hikumu themselves were almost as powerful as the gods that had given magic to the humans.

Zeyla stared into the fire, her memories of her mother and father flashed into her brain.

 _Flashback_

 _It was a peaceful night with the moon shining down in the small town bathing the ground with its silver light. Zeyla was sitting up in her bed staring at the stars. Suddenly a boom thundered through the night air and shook the house. Zeyla froze. What was it?_

 _The door of her room flung open and her mother stormed in._

 _"Mom, what was that?" Zeyla asked scared._

 _"Darling, it was nothing," Her mother said with a pale face, "Just get out of bed now. We need to go."_

 _Zeyla furrowed her eyebrows, confused. Her mother shook her head, not wanting to explain. "Just follow me." Her mother said. "Your father will be here too."_

 _"Mom, what's happening?" Zeyla pestered._

 _"Honey, I can't explain now. I'll tell you later." Her mother replied exasperated._

 _Zeyla just hopped out her bed wordlessly and followed her mother out of the door. They ran down the stairs in a hurry and outside. Zeyla caught her breath. All the buildings were flickering in a white flame, collapsing down to the ground. Citizens were running around panicking and screaming in fear of their lives._

 _Zeyla's eyes darted around, trying to take everything in._

 _"Zeyla honey, you stay here. Mommy is going to be gone for awhile. You sit tight and be safe. Okay?" her mother said sadly._

 _Zeyla watched as her mother ran down the street, her body becoming smaller. A roar shook the streets of the tiny village. Zeyla looked around frantically, trying to pinpoint the source. Her eyes widened in disbelief when she saw where it was coming from._

 _Two magical beings were dueling in a battle. The fight was between a white dragon and a red demon. Both were bleeding heavily as each circled around each other, waiting for a time to move in and attack. Right below them was her mother. She was raising both her hands chanting a spell._

 _"MOM!" Zeyla screamed. Her mother didn't turn only concentrating on casting the spell. Zeyla began to run toward her mother. Tripping through the debris and getting burned by the white flames, Zeyla finally made it to her mother._

 _"Mom, what in Earthland are you doing?" Zeyla yelled._

 _Her mother turned and shock flashed across her eyes, "Zeyla! I told you to stay there and wait."_

 _"Mom, I asked what are you doing?" Zeyla asked more forcefully._

 _Her mother ignored the question and went on, "Z, you're bleeding all over and you have burns everywhere. What-"_

 _Her mother was cut off as the demon rushed in and clawed the dragon. Her mother started to chant again. The blood from the dragon fell from the sky and splattered across Zeyla's wounds. She tried to wipe the blood off, but the blood stuck and her skin started to absorb it._

 _"Zeyla, wipe the blood off at once. Never get dragon blood in your system." Her mother snapped. The demon suddenly flew directly to her mom. Zeyla wanted to scream out to let her mother dodge, but the demon slashed across her mother's body and blood spilled. Her mother crumpled to the ground._

 _"MOM!" Zeyla shrieked. She turned to the demon, anger coursing through her veins._

 _"Zey," a weak voice called out from behind her, "Get out now, I'll be fine. I can make it out. Don't use your magic. That'll only kill me and the rest of the town."_

 _Zeyla didn't hear her. She could only hear the blood pounding in her ears. She could feel new power surging in her body. Her hand was now lit on fire. White fire. Zeyla looked at her hand confused. This wasn't her magic._

 _Realization dawned on her. Her mother had told her to wipe the blood off her before it got into her blood stream. She didn't listen and her blood and the dragon blood had now mixed. Was this the result?_

 _Zeyla narrowed her eyes. She didn't care. All that mattered was that the demon and the dragon had nearly killed her mother, father, and village. She just wanted to slam her fist into both of their faces._

 _She stood there waiting for the dragon and demon to advance to her. The demon flew toward her and she drew her fist back and slammed it into its nose. The demon howled and clutched its face. The dragon started to her too. It opened its mouth and white flames started to gather in its mouth. Zeyla crossed her arms in front of her and screamed in rage. Shards flew through the air and into the dragon's mouth._

 _The dragon shook its head trying to get rid of the shards that stuck in its mouth. Zeyla then made a smashing gesture with her two fists and the two heads slammed together. Both the dragon and demon slumped on the ground defeated. Then, both began to glow with a blinding light. The town began to tremble and shake._

 _There was a large explosion and Zeyla fell to the ground with the impact. The world went black._

 _She fluttered her eyes open. The sun was now out and it burned her skin. She looked down at her arms. All the scratches were sealed with a glowing white light. "The moon." She whispered. She stood up, wobbling on her legs. All around her was rubble and remains of people._

 _"Mom. Where are you? Mom?" Zeyla cried out. There was no reply. She started to panic. Where was her mother?_

 _She stumbled around the ruins trying to look for her mother, but there was no one. She stopped at the demolished fountain. Next to it laid a body with blonde hair stained red with blood._

 _"MOM! ARE YOU OKAY?" Zeyla yelled out. She ran to her mom and flipped her mother over so she could see her face. She had to bite her mouth to keep her from screaming out. Her mother's face was partially ripped off and one of the eyes was dangling out of its socket._

 _Zeyla shook her head not believing what was happening. Ghosts started to rise out of the bodies. As she clutched her mother's body a ghost came out of it. It was her mother._

 _"I told you not to use your magic. You destroyed the entire town. Zeyla, what were you thinking?" Her mother yelled angrily._

 _"B-b-but you were dying. I needed to get rid of the dragon and demon to save you."_

 _Her mother shook her head in disappointment, "Zeyla, your blood had mixed with the dragons. That can cause an extreme blast of magic enough to kill an entire country. Thank God that your magic capability wasn't big otherwise the kingdom of Fiore would be gone."_

 _"My blood mixed?" Zeyla asked in a tiny voice._

 _"Yes Z. You're now a little part dragon. Your powers are too great now. Too dangerous. You did this without even trying." Her mother said gesturing to the broken town, "Please Zeyla, promise you won't use this magic. It's too dangerous. Hide it and lock it away. Using it could kill someone without you meaning to."_

 _"But Mom!" Zeyla said protesting._

 _"Promise me. Swear it." Her mother said firmly._

 _"I swear, "Zeyla mumbled._

* * *

 _Night fell and the moon shone out. Zeyla kicked the rubble of the town. The moon, her magic had killed an entire town. What was wrong with her? She glared at the moon._

 _"You gave me the power to kill everyone I loved. Your dragon almost killed my mom. Why huh? What do you want with me. What does that demon want with me? I can't ever be a wizard anymore like I dreamed because I'm too dangerous." She yelled._

 _She spun around and started to stomp off, going nowhere in particular. The fields passed her. Rain or sun, Zeyla ran on trying to run away from her terror._

 _Thunder and lightning came from the sky drenching her. She was all bone and skin from lack of food and sick from the nights she spent in the cold._

 _"Might as well die now." Zeyla said to herself. Her hand flickered to life with ghost-white flames. She held it in front of her face then smashed it her body. She could see the moon now as she fell to the ground._

 _Zeyla laughed inwardly. The moon. It had given her all the power she could ever want, yet it was something that would haunt her for the rest of her life._

 _"Hello mother. I can now see you again." She whispered into the sky._


	6. Meeting Another Zeyla

Natsu walked through the streets craning his neck.

"Igneel!" He yelled. Happy flew with him trailing behind him.

"Natsu, you can stop pretending you're looking for Igneel. No one's looking or listening right now." Happy said.

Natsu frowned, "I guess Happy, but if Gramps or someone from the guild finds that I'm still looking for Zeyla, they'll have my back."

"Salamander-sama!"A roar came from a crowd.

"Huh?" Natsu said. "Igneel is here?"

Natsu rushed over to the crowd and yelled "Igneel.", but his father dragon wasn't there. It was a man with purple hair and the world's worst cape. Then Natsu saw a locket of golden hair.

 _Golden hair. Just like Zeyla's._

Natsu glanced at the girl. She might just be Zeyla.

 _Hold your tongue for now Natsu._

The man with the purple hair walked over and gave Natsu an autograph, "So you can show it you friends."

"No thanks," Natsu said. He was suddenly punched back into the trashcans by a mob of fan girls.

"Red Carpet," The "Salamander" said. "I'm having a ball on my ship tonight. All of you ladies are invited."

The fangirls screamed once more.

"Who the heck was that guy?" Natsu asked himself.

The girl with the blonde hair walked over and held out her hand, "What a scumbag. Thanks a lot!"

Natsu raised his eyebrows confused, "Huh?"

She then dragged Natsu to a near-by restaurant, "I'm Lucy. Nice to meet you!" She said.

Natsu didn't pay much attention. His mind was on food and he started stuffing the food down his through as fast as he could. "Natsu and Happy, was it?" Lucy asked.

"You're really nice." Natsu said indicating to the food.

"Thanks sure…Just take your time and I'm kind of in the splash zone here…. You see Salamander guy was using a Charm spell, a type hypnosis spell. That kind of magic can make people attracted to you, but its sale was banned years ago. He'd go that far to be popular? What a creepy jerk. But thanks to you barging in the charm was lifted so this is my way of saying thanks."

"I see." Natsu said not really paying attention.

"I know I don't seem like it, but I'm actually a wizard myself!" Lucy said with a bright smile.

 _A smile just like Zeyla's. A smile that could make anyone's day brighter. A smile that could cheer anyone up. A smile that she gave Natsu when he missed Igneel._

"I haven't joined a guild yet though. Oh yeah, guilds are places where wizards gather to share information and take on jobs. You can't be said to be a full-fledged wizard unless you've joined a guild. But, but….There are guilds all over the world, and it's really difficult to get into the popular ones you see! The one that I want to get into, see, has like a ton of amazing wizards, and."

Natsu exchanged looks with Happy as Lucy went on and on about the guild she wanted to join. Natsu raised one eyebrow to Happy as if to say "ummmm….."

She broke Natsu's thought trance when she said, "Oh yeah, It looked like you guys were searching for someone."

Natsu froze. He was looking for Zeyla but there was no way that he would just tell this Zeyla look alike.

"Yeah. I'd heard that a salamander was going to be in town so it's good we checked it out. But I guess it was someone else." Natsu said lying.

Natsu explained that he was looking for his father Igneel who was a dragon. Lucy then rose an eyebrow, "Something like that wouldn't be in the middle of town!"

Natsu widened his eyes for show so Lucy wouldn't be suspicious.

" _I know. But girl named Zeyla might be."_ He thought sadly.

Lucy rolled her eyes, "You just realized that now? Anyway, I have to go now, so take your time."

Natsu hurriedly got out of his seat. This girl may not be Zeyla, but she did look like her and Natsu hadn't seen that face in such a long time.

"We appreciate your kindness!" Natsu and Happy yelled, bowing down to the floor.

Lucy jumped back in embarrassment and screamed, "Stop it already! You're embarrassing me!"

Natsu had to smile. Even her personality was just like Zeyla's. He looked up and saw her storming off.

"Natsu," Happy said bugging him, "Why are you looking at Lucy like that?"

Natsu tilted his head in bitter-sweet memories, "She looks just like Zeyla."

* * *

Later at night, Happy and Natsu stood on top of the roofs staring at the sky and moon. "Hey Zeyla." Natsu called out to the moon. "It's been how many years? I can't visit you today. Gramps kept a close eye on me so I promise I'll visit you tomorrow."

"Aye Natsu! Is that the ship salamander's party at?" Happy asked.

I looked down at the sea and my stomach started to hurl.

 _Transportation._

Natsu started to feel tears come to his eyes. He had one more reason to hate transportation. It was the conversation that drove Zeyla away. He then heard a few girls next to him talk.

"Oh I wish I had gone to Salamander's party."

"Salamander?"

"He's the famous Fairy Tail wizard that came to town."

Natsu frowned. " _A Fairy Tail wizard named Salamander. What a fraud. When Lucy was talking about him, I thought she was joking. Fairy Tail does not have a member like that creepy guy."_ Natsu then remembered, Lucy was on the ship. " _She might be in danger. I have to go by just in case."_

Natsu jumped off the roof and waved a hand. Happy caught his back and made their way to the ship. Natsu narrowed his eyes. All the people that were at the party were all suddenly sleeping.

"Happy," Natsu said, "Drop me off at the roof. I have a party to crash."

Happy dropped Natsu and Natsu slammed his fist into the roof. The wood splintered under the force and caved in. Natsu landed on the floor to see Lucy, along with many other women, all captured by bandits.

Lucy widened her eyes when she saw him.

"Natsu!" She cried out. Natsu ignored her and fell to the ground.

 _Motion sickness. It's what drove her away. It's what killed her. It's what made her turn into a monster._

Lucy sweat dropped and muttered, "Lame."

She turned her head up and saw Happy floating above the hole that Natsu had created.

"Happy!" Lucy said, relieved that someone was able to save her, "I was tricked. He said that he'd help me join Fairy Tail." She paused for a second,

"Wait, since when did you have wings?"

Happy waved a paw to say that could be discussed later. Lucy suddenly felt something tight against her waist. She looked down. Happy's tail was wrapped around her tightly and he then flew up. "RUN AWAY!" Happy exclaimed.

Natsu watched as Happy got Lucy away.

" _Good,"_ He thought, " _Now I can take on these lugnuts that tried to hurt Zeyla. Wait Lucy."_

 _"_ Hey!" He called out from behind them. The men turned around and charged at me.

 _Uh oh._

Natsu could feel his motion sickness kicking in again and was helpless when the men started to punch him.

"Ah well, we must hurry to Bosco." The fake Salamander said.

Natsu started to fell the anger well up in him. How dare this man make dirt on fairy Tail's name. He held up and arm and blocked a foot that was crashing down on him.

"Fairy…Tail…You?!"Natsu growled. Then he heard a faint ding dong as if the church bells were ringing. The floor of the ship started to rumble and shake like an earthquake was coming their way. A shadow fell on the ship and Natsu looked up. It was a humongous wave.

The wave blew the entire ship to shore where it finally crashed into the buildings on land. Natsu slowly got to his feet and looked around. Where was that impostor?

He heard a sweet voice calling out his name, "Natsu!"

It was Lucy. He threw Lucy a quick glance and saw that Happy was with her. " _Now the fun begins."_ Natsu thought.

He turned his attention back to the impostor, "You, a Fairy Tail wizard." Natsu asked with venom in his voice

The "Salamander" frowned, "What's it to you? Get 'im boys!"

Natsu got angrier. That man thought he could defeat him? "Take a good look at this face." Two men from the crowd started to run to him with their fists drew back. Natsu slapped both of them across the face and they fell down to the ground unconscious.

"I am Natsu of Fairy Tail! And I ain't never seen you before! I dunno if you're a good guy or a bad guy, but I ain't gonna let you get away with pretending to be from Fairy Tail." Natsu threatened.

The impostor smirked, "And what are you going to do about it boy? Prominence Typhoon!"

Red seals appeared around the man and purple magic headed toward Natsu causing an explosion.

Natsu laughed. This fight was going to be fun. "Gross! Are you really a fire wizard? I can't believe how gross this fire tastes!"

It was funny seeing all their shocked faces as they saw Natsu was eating the fire. He cracked his knuckles. " _Let's have some fun."_

 _"_ Thanks for the meal." He said

"W-w-w-w-what the heck is he!?" The crowd murmured

"Now that I've eaten, I'm all revved up." Natus said with a small smile on his face.

 _This is for you Zeyla._

Natsu smashed his two fists together and a red seal came in front of him. "Here I go!" Natsu yelled, " ROAR OF THE FIRE DRAGON!"

The flames leapt out of his mouth and into the crowd of bandits. Not one person was spared. The light from the flames covered the entire town, exploding the near-by buildings.

"Bora," a man called weakly from the rubble, "I've seen him before. With pink hair and a scarf that looks like scales, He's the real Salamander!"

Natsu smiled when they finally found out who he was, "Remember it well, this is what areal Fairy Tail wizard is!"

Natsu ran toward Bora and slammed his blazing fists into his face.

"DAMN YOU!" Bora screamed in rage.

Natsu just grinned. He sucked up the flames that were headed his ways. Power surged through his body.

"I'm getting a pretty good meal here! Listen up, jerk. I'm gonna smoke you to a smoldering crisp!"

Bora's eyes widened, "SMOKE ME?"

Natsu nodded and yelled, "IRON FIST OF HE FIRE DRAGON!"

Natsu punched the man and sent him flying to the bells. Bora hit the bells with a gong and Natsu smiled to himself.

 _The battle is over._

The military was storming over. Natsu cursed at himself. He grabbed Lucy's hand and yelled, "Crap let's get outta here!"

"Why are you taking me?" She complained.

Natsu rolled his eyes, "Well you wanted to join our guild right?"

He looked back at Lucy and his heart broke. It was the same look that Zeyla would always give before she would burst out in a big thank you.

"Come with me!" Natsu said.

 _I can't lose her again no matter where she is. This is the closest thing I can have to her._


	7. The Cloaked Guild

The shouting's of the crowd turned to low mummers as a group of cloaked people moved through the streets. At the head was a figure draped in a glowing silver cape that hid their face. Behind her were three rows of people each row having four people in it, all of them wearing blood red capes.

Whispers darted among the people, exchanging rumors.

 _I think that's Demons Hour_

 _Look at their cloaks, all stained red from the blood of their victims._

 _What about the one in the front?_

 _I hear their leader is so powerful that he hasn't got a single drop of blood on him._

 _They say that they're more powerful than the Ten Wizard Saints._

 _What are they doing in our town?_

The people parted a path in fear that the wizards were going to kill them. Then the figure in the front spoke, "Where is the town hall? I need to see the mayor."

All the citizens in the crowd protested.

"We won't let you kill the mayor!"

"Yeah, go away!"

"We'll call the wizards to drive you away."

The leader did not move. "I will not repeat myself," the leader said icily, "Where is the town hall? I need to see the mayor."

No one spoke up, not wanting to betray the safety of the town.

The leader laughed. "I guess I have to do this the hard way then." A gloved hand rose from beneath the folds of the clock and the people could hear a scream of terror. Everyone looked around and saw a child floating in the air, grabbing their throat, choking.

"Stop it! You'll kill her!" Someone yelled out.

The leader of the group tilted her head, "Is this child worth the information or not? If she is, tell me. If not, she dies."

A silence was held in the square.

"Please," a voice whimpered. A woman walked through the thong of people and bowed in front of the leader, "Release my child. Please."

A voice coldly replied, "Not until you have told me the location of the town hall."

The mother of the child bowed her head, "Very well, it is at the center of the city. Please may you-"

She was harshly cut off, "Lies," the group leader snarled, "That's not the real one. Where is the real town hall? Tell me now. You have thirty seconds or the entire town blows up. TELL ME NOW."

The woman flinched at the loud voice, "I am sorry no one knows. We only have heard rumors."

The hidden face of the leader twisted into an evil smile, "Very well." The child fell out of the air and crumpled onto the stone street. "I guess this is good-bye." The leader waved their hand. Nothing happened at first but then, a rumbling started. People looked at the ground to see the ground splitting open.

"You have chosen your fate. I hope we meet again in hell." The leader said. The leader jumped up and spread out black wings. The rest of the group disappeared in a shimmering mirage. The leader watched as the town fell into a black abyss.

The group members reappeared next to their leader. The leader removed the hood of the cloak to reveal silver hair and brilliant purple eyes.

"I think you overdid it Zeyla," a voice came from behind her.

Zeyla laughed, "I guess, but we needed the info. They wouldn't give it to us so I had to do something. Let's go back to camp."

* * *

A glowing light flickered in the forest and thirteen people stumbled out of it.

"Thanks Neo." Zeyla said. A boy with orange eyes and messy white hair nodded.

Zeyla raised her voice and waved her arms, telling everyone to come over here, "We know almost all the locations of the gems. We have one small problem. Neo over here," She said pointing to the boy, "Has found new information on the Ultimate Power."

Zeyla stepped aside and indicated for Neo to talk, "We know that there are supposed to have four gems to unlock the gate: water, earth, air, and fire. However, because the gate of Ultimate Power is supposed to represent life, we also need light and dark. It just so happens that all of these gems but the water one is going to be located in one place in a few months time."

Eyebrows were raised at this point. Throughout the time that they were in Demons Hour, their goal had been to find the gems and unlock the gate. The gems were extremely powerful; having one would already mean you could potentially be S-class.

"We already know who posses what gem," Neo said continuing, "Almost all of them are going to be at the Grand Magic Games, which means-"  
 _  
"_ We are going to participate." Zeyla finished.

All the members of Demons Hour looked extremely confused and in shock. Finally, one member spoke up, "Sorry to be a party pooper Zeyla, but how are we going to sign up. We are a dark guild. A _dark_ guild. They aren't going to let us participate."

Zeyla smiled, "Do not doubt me Hisame," she said to the blonde hair, blue-eyed mage, "Neo already has taken care of that. We hacked into the system. We are now a guild that has been operating for twelve years under the name of Vipers Fang. The Master's name is Mamushi Kiba. This is our third year participating. Last year we got thirtieth place. Understood?"

The guild nodded. A high pitched voice whined from the back, "Can we eat now, I'm hungry."

Zeyla genuinely grinned, "Kay! Let's celebrate tonight's full moon!"

She held out her hands to a pile of wood and white flames burst out of her palms. The wood crackled to life and cast a holy light onto the guild. A girl with long, black hair pulled water out from the nearby river and began shaping it into animals.

A young girl with flowy green hair twirled her hands and white flowers blossomed onto the surrounding trees, releasing a sweet fragrance. While she was doing that, a teenage boy with light brown hair and ice blue eyes waved his arms around, causing a light cool breeze.

A girl came into the opening with a deer slung across her shoulder, "I got dinner." She exclaimed, "Not to mention I found a new patch of raspberries."

The guild surrounded the girl and helped her bring the deer over to the crackling flame. Zeyla pulled out a slim knife and chopped the deer into chunks. "Take whatever you want and roast it. It's the full moon."

The guild members greedily hounded the deer meat and ate if they were starved which was partially true.

They could rarely buy from stores as no one would allow dark guilds to do so, so they had to resort to hunting. Thank god they had a hunter. Although she was younger than most, her archery and sword skills were beast, not surprising because her magic was reequip.

"Hey Zeyla," a voice whispered from behind her. She turned around to see Hikumu.

"Oh hey. What do you need?" She asked.

Hikumu lightly smirked, "I don't need anything. I just noticed you haven't eaten anything. I brought over some food if you need some."

Zeyla shook her head, "Nah, I'm tired. I'm going to my tent and sleeping. See you tomorrow and make sure they don't get to crazy, kay?"

Zeyla thought she saw some disappointment in Hikumu's eyes but she brushed it off.

He could deal with it.


	8. Meeting Blondie

A large group of people stood still in the mist of the forest, the morning fog covering their presence. One man white hair and orange eyes stood in front of them casting a hand over each person. One by one, the appearance of each person changed. One now remained. She stepped forward and the man ran his hand over her head.

Her silver hair turned to raven black and her eyes changed to green. The once fair-skin of hers turned into a golden tan. The girl stepped to the front and turned around to face the group.

"We are now going to go to the Capitol of Fiore. During the Grand Magic Games, restrain yourself from using too much magic power. Try to seem ….normal. If you have more than one type of magic, stick to one or two. We are not entering the Grand Magic Games to win. We are there to obtain the gems. Getting first place would attract too much attention to a non-existent guild. All of you understand?"

The guild nodded and placed their hoods over their heads. They started to walk out of the forest and once they had reached a clearing, the entire guild linked hands to form a circle.

"Ready Neo?" The now raven haired women asked.

The boy nodded, closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The air around the guild started to shimmer like the heat over there was intense. A white light came from under the circle and shined up into the brightening sky. A loud zap was heard throughout the clearing and suddenly, the guild had disappeared.

Near the train station of Crocus, a white light could be seen at the near-by farm fields. A guild stepped out of the light and started to walk toward the train station. They headed to the sign-in building and picked up the rules sheet.

The girl with the black hair skimmed through and announced.

"Main points everyone. Listen up. Members participating must return to lodgings by midnight. Anyone without an insignia cannot participate and guild masters cannot be entered into the tournament.

A girl with purple hair raised her hand, "Zeyla, I mean _Iberia Jikan._ You're the guild master, how are you going to participate?"

"Iberia Jikan" raised her eyebrow and smiled, "Hisame, remember, Mamushi Kibais our guild master, not me."

Another girl with blonde hair frowned, "Just a question _Iberia,_ why is it that only you changed your name? Why not us too?"

Zeyla snorted, "Because there are certain people that are participating that knew me very well. If they heard the name and looked at me, they could tell who I am. I don't want that happening."

Zeyla slyly smiled. "Oh by the way, I think it's time to announce the teams. Obviously, Team A is Compass Rose, but now to announce Team B. If you hear your name, please step forward. Eria Glasgow."

The guild nodded in approval. She was the strongest after the Compass Rose.

"Hikari Rayner."

A few eyebrows were raised at this, but it was accepted. With his Heavenly Body magic, it would be hard to defend against that.

"Hisame Ashford for distraction against guys and Gray Fulllbuster."

No one complained against this.

"Hana Ireton."

This was understandable. With her cute little face and seemingly shy personality, most would underestimate her and go easy.

"One spot left." Zeyla said. The tension was thick as the rest of the remaining guild waited for their name to be called out.

"Umie Breton." Zeyla announced.

The remaining three immediately started protesting against this. Zeyla raised her hands for silence.

"I have chosen these five for certain reasons. I did not choose you three because we need info on the jade necklace that represents earth. I need you three to pinpoint the exact location of the whereabouts. We only know the general area." Zeyla coldly said.

She smirked, "By the way, whoever has the most points in the end or finishes their job first by the end of the Grand Magic Games gets a prize."

"Juden, Arashu, and Moyasu, you guys can get started on your mission." The three boys nodded and departed into the city and headed toward the royal castle.

Zeyla turned around and cracked her knuckles. "Ready to get those gems? Hisame, you know what you're going for, Hana Umie you too."

The girls nodded and then Zeyla raised her voice, "The Grand Magic Games to not start until two days from now. Feel free to explore the city, just return to the dorms by midnight."

The guild cheered and went on their separate ways. Zeyla started to walk to the town square looking for something to eat and do some window shopping. When she arrived at the square, she could hear high pitch squealing.

Zeyla inwardly groaned. One thing she really hated was when girls started over-obsess on something stupid. She sighed and pushed her way through the crowd to see a boy with spiky blond hair and a cocky grin.

His dark blue eyes had a arrogant look to it. The boy had on a blue vest with golden outer edges and inner edges covered by a trimming of gray fur. Girls were clinging on him shouting,

"Sign my body!"

"Marry me!"

"Please be mine.!"

"I love you, please be with me forever!"

Zeyla rolled her eyes and continued trying to get past the crowd of girls. As she was headed past the boy a warm hand grabbed her wrist and pulled her in. She came in face to face with the blonde boy.

"Hey girl. Like what you see?" He whispered in her ear.

Zeyla turned to face him and narrowed her eyes. She could now get a good look at his face. She scanned every inch of it. Her eyes caught a glimmer at his ear. She focused on it.

Bingo

On his left ear was a diamond earring. Zeyla could sense a large ancient magic power radiating from it. She raised an eyebrow and smirked at him

She sweetly smiled at him and coyly said, "Of course."

Zeyla then raised her hand and slapped him across the face, "NOT." She said finishing the sentence. The boy looked shocked like he'd never been rejected by a girl before.

Zeyla glared at the blonde, "Do you know what I hate the most? A boy who thinks he's a gift from heaven, a boy who thinks he can get every girl. I know your type. You think you're soooooo amazing and you think you can get any girl you want," Zeyla then pointed at herself, "Let me tell you something. You won't be getting this girl. Nice meeting you."

She yanked her hand out of his grip but then was crushed by a mob of angry girls.

"How could you insult my boyfriend?"

"He's my boyfriend."

"You're so disrespectful."

Zeyla fumed. Every passing second, she just wanted to blow the girls into itsy bitsy pieces of nothing. She took a deep breath and released some of her magic power and the girls were blasted back by the force.

Zeyla frowned and glared at the girls, "If you think this guy is dateable, something is seriously messed up with your brain."

She huffed and started to walk away. The boy stood there shocked as he realized that he got rejected. A shadow slowly slid up behind him. It formed a figure of a boy with black hair and red eyes.

"That's a first." The black-haired boy said quietly.

"Fro thinks so too." A green exceed in a pink frog outfit agreed.

"Sting-kun, what happened?" a red exceed asked with worry in his voice. The blonde paid no attention to them his eyes were trained on the girl that was walking away from him.

"A challenge," he said softly, "I like it."

 **Zeyla POV**

Zeyla was irritated. Who did that boy think he was? As she stormed through the streets she could hear whispers.

"She rejected Sting Eucliffe."

"What? Impossible! No one can resist his charms and kindness."

Zeyla laughed. Kindness? What did those girls see in that guy? Or Sting as they called him. All that Zeyla saw was that he was a player and would break your heart once he got it.

Zeyla entered a small café and sat at a small booth. She raised a hand over to call a waiter.

"I'll order a mango smoothie and a chocolate muffin please." She said.

The waiter nodded and hurried off to get the order. Zeyla glanced out the window, enjoying the view. The sun was shining down. In front of the café was a marble fountain spewing crystal clear water. People were throwing coins into the water.

 _Making wishes. I wish I had the money to that._

The waiter returned and Zeyla handed over some pick pocked money. Zeyla picked up her muffin and when she was about to bite it, a group of boys and their exceeds walked in. It was Sting.

Zeyla growled in her muffin. Was he that determined to make her life miserable? Sting and his raven-haired friend walked to the counter and said, "The usual please."

The girl cashier giggled and nodded. She reached under the counter to the glass display and pulled out box which Zeyla assumed was filled with sweets. Zeyla turned her head to face the window, hoping that her hair would cover her face. No luck.

"Hey, I never got your name." a cocky voice said. Zeyla took a deep breath and forced a smile onto her face.

"The name's Iberia Jikan. Now if you please excuse me, I have better things to do than talk to a player." She spat out with venom in her voice. She grabbed her drink and food and walked out of the café.

"Wait!" she heard Sting call after her, "Are you participating in the Grand Magic Games?"

Zeyla just ignored him and walked toward the dorms. Her fist clenched up.

 _I hope I get to fight him and punch that arrogant smirk off his face._


	9. The Book of the Past

Lucy POV

The moon glowed, outshining the stars. Master Makarov had just announced who would be participating in the Grand Magic Games. This would be Lucy's second time participating. The team had minor changes with now being Lucy, Erza, Natsu, Gray, and Laxus. Lucy skipped to her apartment humming, happy that she would be participating again.

"I just hope there won't be any dragons this time." She joked to herself remembering last year's Games.

She flung open the door and raced to room, wanting to start packing. The team was going to leave tomorrow for training and Lucy didn't want to wake up and extra hour earlier just to pack. She stepped on the cool wood floor and looked into her closet. Ah, all the possible choices. Lucy tilted her head wondering what she would bring.

"Ah, I'll just bring my entire closet. I think I can handle that," she said imagining herself as Erza carrying the whole load. Lucy ripped the clothes off the hangers and shoved it into a rather large suitcase.

"Done. That was easy." She said dusting off her hands. She took a step backward and her foot fell into a narrow hole.

"Huh?" Lucy looked behind her and saw that one of the floorboards had become loose and popped up. She yanked her foot out of the hole and was about to replace it when her eye caught something.

Tucked away in the corner of the hole was a leather book with golden words on the binding reading "Best Memories"

Lucy reached her hand and pulled the book out and blew the dust off the cover. She flipped to the first page. It said in a messy kid's handwriting, "To my best friend Natsu"

Lucy's eyes widened. Who had written this? She began to skim the pages in the book. The pages were yellowed and the pictures and words were all faded. Most of the photographs had a picture of Natsu with another girl. She had blonde hair like Lucy that flowed like a river and bright white smile. What stood out the most were her eyes. They were a purple that dominated the entire picture. By each picture was a small paragraph what was happening in the picture.

Lucy flipped to the last page. It was a picture of Natsu giving the mystery girl a piggyback ride while both were laughing their heads off. Underneath the picture was a quick description.

 _Today Natsu and me went to the forest again right to my favorite spot underneath the willow tree. It was fun, we ran around a lot and he even gave me a piggy back ride which he almost never does. He's so funny when he gets angry. We played in the river and he told me again his fights against Gray. It's nice having a friend that you can spend time with. Natsu's so nice and funny, I'm really happy that I'm his friend._

"Hey Lucy, what are you reading?"

Lucy jumped up in shock and turned around to see Natsu at the doorway of her bedroom, leaning against the doorframe.

"N-n-nothing." She said stuttering.

Natsu frowned, "You're a really bad liar. Is it something you wrote? Please can I read it?"

Lucy frantically shook her head, "No you can't read it."

She then felt the book slip away from her grasp. Looking up she saw that Happy had stolen the book from her. "HAPPY GIVE IT BACK!"

"Sorry Lucy. No can do. We want to read your novel." Happy said with a devil smile

"It's not my book. I just found it in my room." Lucy exclaimed. It was too late Natsu already was flipping through the pages with an astonished face.

"Where did you get it?" Natsu whispered.

Lucy groaned and rolled her eyes, "I already told you, in my room. I stepped on a floorboard and this was under it. I just found it. Who is that girl anyway? I've never seen her around the guild."

There was no answer and Lucy saw that Natsu had his hand gently touching the face of the girl.

"Natsu? Natsu? You okay?" Lucy called.

"She kept all these memories?" Natsu said in hollow voice.

Lucy frowned hating to be ignored, "Hey Natsu, mind telling me who this girl is?" Lucy said getting impatient.

Natsu lifted his head to face Lucy and she was dumbfounded when she saw tear streaks on his face.

"ummm," Lucy said awkwardly, "I'll go in another room." She started to tiptoe out, but when she got to the door, Natsu replied.

"Her names Zeyla. She was my best friend."

Lucy twisted her head around and looked at Natsu. His head was bowed in what looked like shame, his pink hair covering his eyes. He was shaking in silent tears as he remembered all the fun Zeyla and he had when they were young, before she ran away and died.

"Sorry," Lucy softly said, "I shouldn't have asked."

Natsu faintly smile, "Nah, it's fine. That was a long time ago. It was way before you joined." He said sadly.

"Then," Lucy said hesitating, "can I ask what happened to her?"

Natsu was quiet for a moment, not wanting to relive the night Zeyla had disappeared. Lucy was afraid that she had poked a touchy spot in Natsu's life.

"You don't have to tell me." She said.

"She died. It was my fault. I blamed her; I angered her and forgot all that she had suffered. I don't know her past clearly but I…I said something that connected to her past and parents and she just blew. She's gone now." Natsu said bluntly.

"Oh." Lucy said in a small voice.

"This was here house." Natsu continued, "I got a gift from her that day she ran away into the woods. I still have it. I assume that's why you found that book. I still have her gift. I never took it off."

He pulled a necklace from beneath his scarf for Lucy. It was barely glowing as if to reflect Natsu's mood. "I wish I could undo time and take back my words. She was the only one that could make me feel better no matter what."

The two plus Happy sat in silence. Then Lucy spoke up , "Hey, Natsu, if you need to talk…"she trailed off.

"Thanks." Natsu said. The night breeze blew through the open window and ruffled Natsu's hair.

"That's why I can't sleep on full moons." Natsu said suddenly. Lucy's eye's told him to continue.

"It was a full moon when she disappeared. She cast a spell or something to remind me of that night forever. Every full moon, I get these horrifying nightmares of her and my father Igneel. It's so bad, I don't dare to sleep. I just stay up and go visit her for the entire night."

Lucy nodded and put her arm around Natsu and the two stared at the white moon. She then heard Natsu whisper, "Hello Zeyla."

Zeyla POV

The cold night air chilled the guild to the bone as they huddled beneath the thin sheets in the tents. Around the campfire were thirteen tents, one for each member of the guild. Zeyla sat up and wrapped the white cloak around her and exited her tent. Standing still for a moment, she listened to the snores of her team. Her eyes softened. This was her family. She could not let them down.

Wanting to unwind, she walked away from home base and deeper into the forest. Crossing a bunch of boulders and a thick patch of trees, Zeyla finally arrived at her new favorite spot.

It was a cliff overlooking the wilderness beneath her. A river ran here, falling all the way to the base of the cliff making a beautiful and relaxing rushing sound. Zeyla sat down and wrapped her arms around her legs. She stared at the full moon.

The moon gave her power and despair. It gave her bad memories of death and weakness, but yet, it was something that kept her secure.

Zeyla closed her eyes and let the cool breeze run through her hair.

"You need some company?" a voice breathed from behind her ear.

She stiffened then quickly relaxed when she realized it has Hikumu. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"I dunno. You seemed distracted so I thought something was wrong. I mean, you normally eat something for dinner." Hikumu replied.

Zeyla sighed, "I'm just stressed. I'm always stressed. I'm just….." she didn't finish the sentence.

"You're just what." Hikumu asked. Zeyla didn't say anything and she just stared at the moon again.

"I'm afraid and scared okay?" She finally said. Hikumu raised an eyebrow. Zeyla, scared? Those two words didn't belong together in a sentence.

"You?" he asked doubtfully.

"Yeah. I'm always scared that one of you guys are going to get hurt or killed or maybe if I yell at you guys or say the wrong thing, you might get mad at me. I mean we've been in many battles before, but if one of the guild members die or disappear, I don't think I could forgive myself, ever." Zeyla said lowering her head.

She felt an arm wrap around her warming her up. Hikumu pulled her in closer. "Don't worry Zey. It'll be alright. We choose to fight those battles and we know the risks. We all look up to you. You gave us a second chance at life. Hey look at me."

Zeyla lifted her head and looked into his purple eyes, "Don't be afraid. Be fearless, both for you and our family." Hikumu said softly.

Zeyla nodded and placed her head in the crook of Hikumu's neck. She breathed in deeply and the sleep began to slowly take-over her. Her eyes closed and she fell asleep listening to the gentle rush of the water fall.


	10. Team Huddle

A/N do look back a few chapters. I updated a lot

Sting POV

Sting craashed onto his bed back at Sabertooth's dorm. Who was that girl? He had never seen her around here or at any part of the Grand Magic Games. He rolled over to face the ceiling of his bed.

 _Knock Knock_

"Come in." Sting called. The door creaked open to reveal Rogue, Frosch, and Lector.

"You okay bro?" Rogue asked. Lector stood there quietly which was a first for him. He opened his mouth, but then closed it when he thought better of it.

"Sting?" Rogue repeated.

Sting turned around on his bed and looked at Rogue, "What just happened at the café again? I can't believe this."

Rogue rolled his eyes. At least Sting was somewhat back to normal.

"You were rejected by a girl. Suck it up. She's right. You can't have every girl you lay eyes on. She just doesn't like you so live with it." Rogue said sighing. His partner was sometimes really dumb.

"But, she was someone that seemed down to earth. I-"

"Sting, she doesn't like you, chasing after her is gonna make things worse. Just leave her alone." Rogue said cutting Sting off.

While this conversation, Lector and Frosch's head were whipping back and forth from speaker to speaker. "Ummmm, Sting-kun. Maybe Rogue-kun is right." Lector said meekly.

Sting took a deep breath and let it back out. "You want to grab something to eat?" Sting said finally.

Rogue shrugged and nodded. The Twin Dragons of Sabertooth made their way to the main hall of the dorm where most guild members were hanging out. Yukino smiled at Sting and motioned for him to come over. Rogue and Sting made their way over.

"What is it Yukino?" Sting asked.

"We were thinking of going to a restaurant, you know before the Grand Magic Games start. Just the five of us plus Lector and Frosch. We can discuss strategies for fighting."

The five was the team for the GMG. It consisted of Sting, Rogue, Yukino, Rufus, and Orga. Sting nodded and the group walked out of the guild and into the town.

By now, it was near seven. The sky was turning a deep purple and the stars and moon were starting to glow in the darkness. The sounds of laughter could be heard through the town as the streetlights flickered on. The group stopped at a restaurant and inhaled the delicious scents that wafted from the door.

Stepping inside, they could see that the restaurant was dimly lit and crowded with many guilds.

"My memory doesn't' recall this place to be this popular." Rufus said with a frown.

Yukino giggled, "Don't worry, I know the owner personally so we get a private room." A man in a black suit came to the doorway and bowed deeply.

"Good evening Team Sabertooth. How may I assist you tonight?"

Yukino smiled warmly at him and said, "My name is Yukino. Sakano is a friend of mine. I contacted him last week and he said we could have one of the private rooms on the upper floor."

The waiter bowed once more, "Ah, we have been expecting you Yukino-kun. Please, follow me."

The team walked across the restaurant and to a flight of stairs. As Sting passed the tables near the back of the room, a familiar color passed his eye.

 _Raven black hair_

 _It's Iberia._

He stopped for a second and looked at her table. She was sitting with four other people. One boy with red hair and black eyes wrapped an arm around her waist (HAHA THAT IS HIKUMU. HE GOT HIS HAIR COLOR TO CHANGE INTO RED.) Iberia pouted and gently pushed his arm off, but smiled while doing so.

Sting could feel something bubbling in his stomach. Was he jealous? He hardly even knew that girl, only her name.

His eyes narrowed to see Iberia huddle in with a girl with orange hair (Yumiya), a boy with blue hair (Neo), and a girl with blue hair (Akaine). They whispered a bit than burst back out laughing. Sting turned his head away from the scene and followed Yukino up the stairs.

 **Zeyla POV**

Zeyla stormed back to the dorm. She was fuming inside but told herself to control her anger otherwise, the kingdom of Fiore maybe demolished. She took a deep breath than counted to ten.

"I rarely see you mad. You're normally so calm." Hikumu said with a light laugh.

Zeyla crossed her arms, "Humph. If you were me, you would be mad." She said crossly.

Hikumu than frowned, "The red hair and black eyes don't suit me that well. I don't like it that much.

Zeyla chuckled, "It's fine Hikumu. No need. I think I like it better that way."

"Hey!" Hikumu lightly hitting Zeyla's arm, "That was an insult. I like my blonde hair. By the way, you want to grab Compass Rose and go out to eat. I'm sure that you could brainwash the waiter for awhile."

Zeyla smiled, "You are so baaaad Hikumu. Fine, treats on me. I'll tell the rest of Compass Rose."

* * *

Later that night, the entire Compass Rose went to the restaurant. They choose a table in the back, not wanting to attract much attention. Zeyla plastered on the sweetest smile she could muster and sing songed, "Waiter, we have our order!"

A waiter made his way over and Zeyla stared into his eyes, taking complete control over his brain.

"Honey," Zeyla said, "You are going to give us our dinner free. If anyone asks where the money is, you pay for us okay. When this wears off you will not remember anything. Got that babe?"

The waiters eyes glazed over and he nodded in trance. Zeyla smirked, she loved this power.

"We would like to order 2 servings of the steak, five salads, one large pizza, and three servings of pasta please. We would also like to have five glasses of soda. Thank you very much."

The waiter wrote everything on the pad and walked to the kitchen to place their order. Hikumu then wrapped an arm around her waist. "Sneaky, sneaky Zeyla."

Zeyla untangled herself from Hikumu and laughed, "It was your idea, I wouldn't be talking mister."

Then Zeyla motioned for the team to huddle, "Okay, tomorrow the GMG starts. Neo has gotten info on what the challenge is going to be about. It's called Maze Runner. Teams are going to be transported into a labyrinth; you know the one with bushes and stuff. Scattered in the maze are doors with a guild symbol on it. You have to weave through the maze and find your own guild door. The only way to get through the door is by scanning the guild mark. Neo has scanned the map of the maze so we know where our door is. We're not going to use teleportation cause that would look too suspicious. So remember, return to the dorm by midnight because that's when it starts."

Akaine laughed, "You are just too good _Iberia._ "

"Let the Games begin."


	11. Maze Runner

"Welcome folks to this year's Grand Magic Games!"

Akaine frowned, "What is he supposed to be? A hybrid of a pumpkin, plush toy, and a human?"

Neo squinted, "According to archive, he's the mascot of the Grand Magic Games. I thought the capitol would have something…flashier and amazing, not a pumpkin man."

"Stop talking guys, its almost midnight," Zeyla snapped.

Compass Rose immediately stopped talking and saluted to Zeyla, "Yes ma'am!"

Zeyla rolled her eyes, "Neo, can you send the map of the maze to each of us?"

Neo nodded and started up his archive system, "Aaaaand sent. You guys should have the map in your memory now."

"And just to let you know, the map changes when the maze shifts in real time, so we won't be confused. It has all the booby traps marked on it too, along with where all the other teams are." Neo said continuing.

Compass Rose nodded and stood at the window of the dorm.

"Contestants," a voice boomed through the city, "Please stand next to a window of your dorm and wait to be transported. This year's first elimination round is called… MAZE RUNNER. Rules are simple: be the first to find your guilds door. If you have more than one team, it will be marked A or B. The bushes have magic on them so, hem hem, certain people will not burn them down. First eight teams to make it through their door will move on.

Now starting in 10,….9,….8,….7,…."

Zeyla faced her team, "You ready guys?" Compass Rose nodded.

"3,…2,…1,…GO!"

Suddenly the team was transported into a dim area. Neo reached out his hand.

"We're surrounded by bushes that are fifteen feet tall, so no use climbing over. Fairy Tail team A and Sabertooth is near us."

 _Sabertooth. I need to rip Sting's face off._

Neo than pointed in front of them, "Let's start, our door is near the northeast side, we're on the south end."

Compass Rose ran straight, they took a left than a right. They could navigate through the confusing maze flawlessly due to the map that was burned into their minds. Hikumu suddenly stopped, "They're going to flip the maze," he announced, "Grab onto something."

The team clutched onto the branches of the bushes. The maze began to shudder and shake. They could hear distant thumps and screams as the maze shifted.

Zeyla then stiffened, "Aye, why does it have to be a maze every year!"

 _Natsu. Damn it why does he have to near us?_

Zeyla let go of the branch and started to walk. She looked around to see the changes. A mist had poured in now and the lights were completely shut off. Even with a flame, they couldn't see two feet in front of them.

"Damn, what had they done this time?" Akaine shouted.

"Language Akaine." Zeyla warned.

Zeyla stood still and allowed her senses to flow out. Her eyes flew open, "Monster incoming from one hundred yards, now fifty."

Compass Rose formed a circle, with their backs pressed against each other.

The bushes tore open to reveal a humongous monster dripping in slime. Its mouth was filled with razor sharp teeth with a blue tongue flopping between. Drool spilled from its jaw and fell to the ground smoking.

"Don't touch that!" Yumiya screeched, "I know what that is! It's poison, not to kill you but can put you to sleep for hours. One touch and we aren't going to move on."

Yumiya then glowed a navy blue. She reappeared with a blue arrow and crystal like armor.

 _Titan Armor. Strong enough to deflect all attacks and defend from poison and gases._

Yumiya notched an arrow and aimed. The arrow flew off the bow and into the monsters mouth. The monster stood there and started to crumble. The team didn't even wait for it to die. Instead they took off, not wanting to waste any time.

"We're almost to the door," Zeyla said.

Akaine pouted, "This is no fun. There's no one to fight. We were too quick."

Hikumu laughed at her feisty personality, "Well Fairy Tail Team B is near-by, we could fight them," he said while sneaking a glance at Zeyla to see if she approved. Zeyla nodded.

"Let's have some fun."

The team took a left instead of a right to come face to face with Fairy Tail Team B.

Gajeel stepped forward, "Well, well what have we got here? Some newbie wanting to fight us?"

Akaine stepped forward, "Hell yeah. You think you're so good? Fight me!"

Gajeel cracked his knuckles and sent out a fist. Akaine nimbly dodged the attck and teased, "Too slow!"

Akaine then raised both her arms, "Flaming Wings of the Sun God!"

Black flames erupted from her arms and slashed at Gajeels face. He immediately crumbled to the ground, unconscious.

"GAJEEL!" a girl with short blue hair tied back in a headband yelled.

Zeyla laughed, "Roar of the Ice dragon." She said lazily. Ice shot out of her mouth and froze the entire team.

"Leave some for me!" Hikumu said.

"No problem," Yumiya shouted while notching six arrows at once, "Fire Goddess Arrow!"

Yumiya let the arrow fly and it hit the frozen Fairy Tail Team. The ice instantly defrosted. The team shakily stood to their feet and Hikumu raised his hands above his head. The darkness engulfed the team and choked them. Neo than stood forward and closed his eyes, searching and invading each mind. The Fairy Tail team stood still as the pain was gone. Suddenly they screamed out in pain. All they saw was that their friends were all dying in pools of blood, all calling out their names.

"LEVY!" Gajeel screamed.

"LISANNA WHERE ARE YOU!" Mirajane cried out.

Zeyla stood in front of them as they were screaming. She flicked a hand and they were sent crashing into the wall of the maze.

"Our fun is now done." She said.

The Compass Rose returned to the door. Each scanned their guild mark of Snakes Fang and entered the door.

When they passed through the door, they had entered a large room.

"Oh god, it's the pumpkin man." Neo sighed.

"Very good, very good. Snakes Fang team A, you are the first team to arrive. You may now exit and return to the dorms."

"Thank you." Zeyla said and stiffly bowed. Compass Rose walked out of the golden doors and into the streets. As soon as there were no people in sight, Akaine jumped up and pumped her fist in the air.

"Woohooo! Did you see Gajeel's face when I punched him? Humph he thinks he's one of the strongest people competing. We showed them!"

Zeyla mouth twitched at the ends to hold back a smile, "Let's head back. We have to battle tomorrow so we need our rest."

The team nodded and followed Zeyla through the cobblestone streets.

 **Natsu POV**

"Very good, you are the third team to arrive."

Erza's eyebrows shot up, "Team B beat us?"

The mascot shook his head, "Aaaah, Fairy Tail team B is eliminated as they could not continue anymore. They are in the infirmary."

"WHAT!" the team yelled.

"Sorry I cannot tell you anymore," the mascot said wringing his hands, "Off you go, you may return to your dorms."

The team did not return to the dorm. Instead they headed to the sick room and flung open the door. In there, five beds were filled with Wendy, Gajeel, Levy, Mirajane, and Juvia. Their bodies were all wrapped up in bandages and their faces were bruised and cut.

Natsu fumed. Who had done this? A monster? Another guild?

He stormed over to Wendy and asked, "Who did this?"

Wendy's mouth opened and she tried to speak, but no words came out. She tried again. Finally, her throat could make some noise.

"We were wandering around trying to find the door. Then this team just popped out. Gajeel thought he could beat them so he challenged them. Then this girl with blue hair stepped forward and used her magic. It was god slaying magic. The sun I think. Then this girl with black hair stood forward and attacked us with ice. We were frozen in the ice, so cold, but then they thawed us out. I thought if was over but," Wendy said and took a big gulp

"Then this other boy with black hair came over and the darkness around us started to choke us. Our nightmare came to us. All I saw was the Guild of Fairy Tail being torn to pieces and Carla being stabbed and her wings…. HER WINGS WERE BEING TORN OUT!" Wendy cried out finishing her story.

Natsu's hand clenched into a fist, "Which guild was it?" he asked seething.

"I don't know." Wendy replied in a small voice, "I only saw the mark. It was on the black haired girl. The mark was on her shoulder and it was like a snake head with its fangs showing. I've never seen them before."

Natsu didn't even need to turn around to know that the rest of his team wanted to get revenge on this new team.

"We," Natsu said with anger in his voice, "Are going to kick them in the ass when it comes to the battle. We're going to show them that Fairy Tail is strong and we cannot be beaten. We stand with our friends and never let them down. Isn't that right guys!"

"YEAH!" they replied.

Little did they know that five people had stopped by the doorway to listen to the conversation.

"Whoop our asses?" the black haired girl said softly, "As if they could."


	12. Battle of the Viper and Tiger

"IT'S THE SECOND DAY OF THE GRAND MAGIC GAMES AND WE ALL KNOW YOU'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THE TEAMS TO COME OUT!"

The crowd cheered loudly in anticipation of this year's team. Master Makorov narrowed his eyes to see who had beaten Fairy Tail's A team, while Sabertooth lazily stood against the wall waiting for their name to be called.

"IN EIGHTH PLACE WE HAVE THE INCREDIBLY HANDSOME BLUE PEGASUS!"

A sigh could be heard through the stands as the girls fainted at the sight of Hibiki, Eve, and Ren.

"Hibiki! Eve! Ren!" the girls chanted. Zeyla rolled her eyes. Were all girls here that shallow?

"AND IN SEVENTH PLACE WE HAVE THE BEAUTIFUL MERMAID HEEL!"

The guys all had hearts in their eyes as the all girl guild walked out onto the battlefield. Kagura walked out calmly walked out with her eyes closed and her sheathed sword. Zeyla could feel a sense of extreme power radiating off of her.

 _Might be a worthy opponent_

She felt a tap on her shoulder. It was Hikumu. He fidgeted under her gaze and opened his mouth once or twice.

"Spit it out." Zeyla said with a bored tone.

"Well," Hikumu stammered, "You know we aren't supposed to win the Games?"

Zeyla raised one eyebrow knowing she wasn't probably going to like whatever he was going to say next.

"Weeeellllll, Neo said he could make an illusion of the "guild" we are in and all the extra people, you know cause he can do that. And so he thought if he could do that, we could win the Games. I mean the winnings are a lot and we are low on money…"

Zeyla glared at him, "Who sent you to speak with me? Who came up with the idea? WHO WAS THE ONE THAT WAS SCARED TO FACE ME?"

Hikumu shivered under her shadow and whispered, "Akaine did. Don't kill me."

Zeyla laughed and Hikumu looked at her with wide eyes, not believing what he was seeing.

"Tell her that she is one hell of a smart person. Neo can go ahead with the idea. I approve." Zeyla looked up, "Oh look, it's our turn."

"AND WE HAVE A NEW TEAM THIS YEAR! SURPRISINGLY, THEY SNAGGED A FIRST PLACE ON MAZE RUNNER. PLEASE WELCOME VIPERS FANG A TEAM!"

Compass Rose walked out with Zeyla in the front. They waved their arms in the air as the crowd cheered wildly. What people loved the most was a new team that dominated.

"Well, well, do we have some info on them?"

Jenny from Blue Pegasus smiled, "Apparently they've only participated a few times, but never have gotten past the elimination round. I have to say that this year they're on fire!"

Zeyla smirked. If only they knew the truth. She scanned the field. The teams that made it (In order), Blue Pegasus, Mermaids Heel, Vipers Fang Team B, Lamia Scale, Quarto Cerberus, Fairy Tail Team A, Sabertooth, and Vipers Fang Team A.

Zeyla could feel someone's gaze burning into her neck. She shifted her eyes to her left and saw that the entire team of Fairy Tail was glaring at her. She moved closer to Akaine and whispered in her ear, "Looks like _somebody's_ mad about last night."

Akaine's eyebrow twitched to ask more and Zeyla tilted her head to Fairy Tail. She saw them with a killing gaze in their eyes and laughed. Fairy Tail was too easy to provoke.

"Now we have a game and a battle today. We are going to start with battles. They are going to be random so be prepared! First up we have Bacchus from Quarto Cerberus vs Lucy from Fairy Tail."

Akaine laughed, "I would like to see how powerful a gold key is. I've never seen one in action."

Zeyla's sight on the blonde girl did not waver, "It is incomparable to my keys. Golden Keys are weak."

Akaine just snorted and turned back to the battle. Lucy had three keys in her hand.

"Open Gate of the Bull, Taurus! Open Gate of Maiden, Virgo! Open Gate the Archer, Sagittarius!" The Gates opened with the sound of church bells.

"Impressive," Jenny said, "Seeing a celestial spirit is impressive, but opening three is almost unbelievable."

Zeyla snorted. Only three? Try ten with her, or even more. This Lucy was really weak.

"GO LUCY, YOU CAN DO IT!" a voice called out so loud that it carried out above the other cheers.

Zeyla's gaze moved to the source of the voice and her fists clenched at the sight. Natsu. Of all people, why did she have to meet him here? That monster, he turned her away and gave her pain. It didn't matter anymore. His comments on her weaknesses were no longer valid. She was the strongest wizard on Earthland ever. Even more powerful than Zeref.

"That's the guy you really hate, right?" Zeyla didn't even need to turn around to know it was Hikumu.

"Yeah," she growled.

Zeyla returned her gaze to the battlefield. Bacchus had already beaten the three of Lucy's celestial spirits. No doubt. Golden keys were weak.

Lucy than raised another key, "Open Gate of the twins, Gemini!"

Lucy nodded at the twins as soon as they appeared. Gemini transformed into Lucy and they linked hands.

 _Please show me the glory_

 _Look into the sky, open the sky_

 _All the stars in the universe_

 _Aspect completed_

 _Tetrabiblos I have control over the stars_

 _Open the gate to vulgarity and violence_

 _Shine forth all eighty-eight stars in the sky_

 _VRANO METRIA!_

The sky turned as the planets and stars seemed to spin around Lucy.

"Hm." Zeyla said a little surprised, "I suppose she's not as weak as I thought she would be."

Suddenly, a bright, golden light shot down from the heavens and directly hit Bacchus in the chest, sending him back, making him crash into the stone wall with an immense force. Lucy raised her hands above her head as the crowd screamed in her support.

"THIS IS FAIRY TAIL. WE ARE STRONG." Lucy yelled back at the crowd.

"Strong my ass." Akaine said with disdain in her voice, "A baby could've beaten you."

"OOHHH and would you look at that!" Chapati yelled (For those who do not remember, it's the announcer dude with the wig.), "Lucy has taken Bacchus down and the winner is Fairy Tail! But there's still more to come folks! We have the next battle of Eve from Blue Pegasus vs Lyon from Lamina Scale!"

"Go Blue Pegasus!" Jenny cheered.

Eve and Lyon stood in front of each other. Both knew this would be a close match because both of them used ice/snow for their magic.

"I won't go easy on you Lyon. I have to win." Eve said with a confident grin.

"Sorry, but I don't think your smiles work on men, so don't try that trick." Lyon shot back.

"THE SECOND ROUND STARTS NOW!"

Eve charged in immediately with his hands behind him.

"White Fang!"

Eve thrust his hand out and snow billowed around Lyon, encasing him in the cold chamber.

The crowd was silent. How was Lyon beaten so easily?

"Look up fool." A voice above Eve said.

Eve looked up, but it was too late.

"Ice make hawk!"

A hawk, larger than a tiger slammed down on Eve's body beak first, crushing him deeper into the dirt floor.

"You're messing up my hair!" Eve complained, "And I can't let that happen. WHITE FURY!"

A miniature snowstorm blasted out of Eve's hand and slammed into Lyon's face.

"Blizzard!"

Lyon stumbled back and got engulfed into the snowstorm. He held up his hand and desperately shouted,

"Ice make Shield."

A weak shield covered Lyon's body as Eve relentlessly attacked Lyon. Eve kept redirecting the snow toward Lyon delivering powerful blows.

CRACK

Lyon's shield finally broke and Eve made one last swipe with his hand. The snow hurled toward Lyon and crushed him into the cobble wall. Lyon slumped down on the ground unconscious.

"The winner is Eve of Blue Pegasus!"

The audience roared in approval and started to cheer on for the next match.

"Now, we have Kagura from Mermaids Heel and Eria from Vipers Fang! I wonder what Eria's magic may be. I guess we just have to wait and see."

"This is going to be interesting." Neo said quietly.

The two girls stood facing each other, not making a move. Kagura lifted her face and took a good look at Eria's face.

 _Mistake number one_

Eria's red eyes pierced through Kagura's mind, taking absolute control. Eria the slowly raised a hand and Kagura's hand went up too. Eria mimicked unsheathing a sword. Kagura then found her own sword at her stomach.

"What is this?" Kagura whispered.

Eria said nothing, just smirked. She flicked her hand and the sword slashed against Kagura's stomach making her bleed. The blood poured out and showed no sign of stopping. Stepping forward, Eria's hand created a fist and slammed it into Kagura's face. The dust floated into the air, clouding all vision.

Suddenly, Eria had a sword next to her neck and found Kagura barely standing.

"You shouldn't let your guard down little girl. I managed to escape because of that."

Eria just laughed, "I would look behind you." She said pointing.

Kagura turned in horror to see a sand beast rising form the ground.

"How?" she whispered in fear.

"You know, I don't just control the minds of humans and living things. I can also manipulate non-living things too. Which includes the sand on this very ground you're standing on. Good-bye."

Eria casually waved a hand and the beast stabbed Kagura in the arm and leg, causing her to collapse onto the ground.

Eria smiled, "That was too easy."

"AND THE WINNER IS ERIA FROM VIPERS FANG B TEAM! AND WHAT YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR, THE LAST BATTLE BETWEEN THE CURRENT TOP TWO TEAMS. WE HAVE IBERIA FROM VIPERS FANG A TEAM AND…STING FROM SABERTOOTH!"

"Oh joy. This is perfect. I can wipe that stupid smile off his face now." Zeyla growled. She didn't even bother walking down and instead jumped down from the balcony.

"Com'n Stingy-bee. You too slow?" she taunted him.

Meanwhile at the Sabertooth seats, Rogue gave a pat on the back to Sting, "Don't lose bro."

Sting smirked, "Like I would lose to this girl."

He walked down and faced Zeyla.

"So Iberia, why don't we make a bet? I win, you go on a date with me." Sting said.

Zeyla raised her eyebrows, "And if I win? Don't leave my voice out of this."

Sting laughed, "There's no way you can beat me. Just no way, you? A weak girl? As if."

Zeyla smirked at this. One problem that most people made was underestimating her.

"Fine than. Then I suppose it won't matter if I get to keep Lector for the rest of the day if I win, right." Zeyla said.

Sting returned the smirk, "Of course not."

Lector sweat-dropped in the stands, "Why does he act before thinking?"

"Fro thinks so too!"

"THE LAST ROUND NOW BEGINS!"

The two circled each other, waiting for another to make the first move. Sting struck. He swung a fist at Zeyla's face.

"Sorry about this girly. I normally don't like ruining pretty girls faces, but I'm not going to lose!"

Zeyla kept a calm expression and caught his fist with one hand. "Not going to lose eh? I think you're going to have to try harder then that."

Zeyla swung out her leg underneath Sting and he toppled over and fell to the ground. Slowly getting up, he growled, "Well this is going to be harder than I thought. White dragon's ROAR!"

A white beam burst out of Sting's mouth and headed toward Zeyla. Zeyla frowned in disapproval. Did he think that she would be brought down so easily? She carelessly flicked her hand away from her and the roar was mirrored off into another direction.

"Don't underestimate me Sting." Zeyla spat out, "The venom of a viper can kill a tiger, you know."

Sting narrowed his eyes. So this girl wasn't going to be easy to beat.

"White drive." He said.

Zeyla inwardly smiled. So he was this desperate already? She raised her hand in the air and brought it down. The power that was running through Sting stopped.

Sting looked at his hands in surprise.

"I'm sorry to interrupt you're…increasing power, but that is going to make my job a little more difficult."

His eyes widened. Who was this girl?

At the Vipers Fang seats Compass Rose watched the match in amusement.

"She's toying with him." Yumiya said, "I wonder how long it's gonna take for her to get impatient and just finish him off."

"Ice Dragon's Breath." Sting was then encased in frozen ice. Everyone could see that he was trying to use his Roar to melt the ice, but it wasn't working.

"Don't bother," Zeyla said bored, "The ice won't melt. Not even with fire dragon slaying."

She quickly glanced over at Natsu to check his reactions. Sure enough his face was in total shock. She could hear him

 _Impossible._

"Not so weak now Natsu?" she said to herself.

Zeyla waved a hand and the ice melted, "Now to make things interesting."

She didn't even say anything and ice blast smacked Sting all over his body

 _She can do magic without saying anything? And her attacks are as strong as dragon force and she's not even in it. Just how powerful is she?_

Zeyla's eye's changed from amusement to anger. "This is taking too long." she spat.

Crossing her hands in front of her, Zeyla yelled out, "Secret art of the Ice Dragon, Frozen blizzard storm!"

Ice daggers flew at Sting causing deep cuts throughout his body. Unable to take more pain, Sting collapsed onto the ground unconscious.

"AND THE WINNER IS IBERIA FROM VIPERS FANG. WHAT AN UPSET! STAY TUNED FOR THE GAME!"

Zeyla stood over Sting, "Not so weak huh? Never underestimate anyone, especially me."

She carefully smoothed over a hair that had gotten loose during the battle.

"You've done better than most, I have to say. You made one of my hairs move out of place. Oh, and I'll pick up Lector when the Game is over.  
See you later _Sting."_

 _I only moved a hair? What is she?_


	13. Treasure Hunter

"Now it's time for the game. This year's first game is called TREASURE HUNTER! Please send one contestant from each team to compete."

Neo started to scan through his archive, "Well, Treasure Hunter is basically an underwater hunt. There are eight maps hidden in the city. One catch is that the entire city will be submerged in water. Once you find the map, you go the treasure. The treasure is hidden in a chest which you unlock with the map. Bring the treasure back to the stadium first and you win."

Yumiya laughed out loud, "So that's why you choose Umie for the GMG. You knew that this challenge would include water."

Zeyla didn't say anything and innocently smiled, "What are you talking about?"

Akaine stood up from her seat, "I'm taking this one. With my sun god slaying, I can get rid of the water easily."

Zeyla nodded in approval and motioned her to go down. Akaine walked down and scanned the opponents. From Blue Pegasus was Hibiki, Mermaids Heel was a short girl with orange hair that was braided into two pigtails. From Vipers Fang B Team was Umie.

 _No doubt. I bet Zeyla tipped them off._

Quarto Cerberus had a guy that looked like he was about to cry and from Lamina Scale was a cute little girl with pink hair. Akaine frowned. She could tell that this girl was a god slayer too.

She turned her head to the other side. Sabertooth had sent out Rufus and Fairy Tail had sent out Natsu.

 _Bad choice. His flames aren't strong enough to evaporate water._

"And we have our contestants now. Now the rules. Maps are hidden around the city. Find a map and it'll lead you the treasure. Once you find it, unlock it and head back! You will now be transported to the city in 3…, 2…, 1…"

A blinding flash streaked across the contestants. When the light had blinded down, they could see that they were on platforms that were suspended in the above the city.

Akaine could see disbelief on the others faces when they saw the town was flooded. She wasted no time. She sent out black yellow flames to the others platforms, making them plunge into the water with warning.

Akaine hurried through the town jumping on the roofs of houses that were barely peaking out the water. In her mind held a picture where all the maps were located. As she hopped roofs, she could see the girl from Lamina Scale blast wind under her to stay afloat.

"Pretty smart, but not so much for the rest of them." She muttered. Sure enough almost everyone else was struggling with the water. Hibiki was starting to use his Archive for floating and the crying-puppy guy was desperately trying to keep his above the water. Natsu was just plain flailing in the water like a fish on land.

The only others that were fine was Rufus who she assumed he had used Memory Make to use water magic and Umie who was obviously in advantage with her Water Dragon Slayer magic.

Akaine headed to the fountain near the center of the city. She then plunged her fists into the water and yelled, "ROAR OF THE SUN GOD!"

The water in the area evaporated suddenly and Akaine brought the temperature abruptly to create a frozen wall to keep out the rest of the water.

She jumped down to the fountain and stuck her hand into the flowers that adorned the fountain. The crisp piece of paper met her hand and she pulled it out. Scanning it, she saw a big red X on the north side.

 _Near Sabertooth's dorms_

Akaine wasted no time and made her way out and started heading toward the treasure. Along the way, she had to restrain herself from collapsing in laughter. Natsu was slumped on a roof not moving and the puppy guy was drowning himself in his own tears. Hibiki was sobbing about his clothes.

She glanced behind her and saw that Umie had dived down.

" _Probably found a map."_ She thought grimly. She had to pick up the pace. Rufus also seemed to have located a map two and was speeding in one direction.

Propelling herself across the roofs, Akaine finally arrived at her destination. She dived down and scanned around looking for anything that caught her eyes. As she swam around the building and peeked into a window, the gold that adorned the chest flickered in the weak light.

Akaine slammed her hand on the ground and the water around her evaporated. Using that moment before the water crashed down again, he stuck the map into the keyhole. A blinding light flashed and the top of the chest slowly creaked open.

 _Hurry up you dumb chest_

Akaine grabbed the locket that sat in the center of the chest and kicked her way back up to the surface. Popping her head out the water, she saw that Umie had also gotten her treasure. Akaine grinned to herself.

"Hey other random people!" she yelled out to the others, "Please take my departing gift."

Akaine raised her hands above her head and brought it down it to the water. At first, nothing happened, but soon, Akaine's hands were blazing with black-gold flames that spread throughout the water. The water level dropped dangerously low in a matter of second and the other contestants landed on the stone paths with a loud thud.

"Sorry Umie, but I gotta win this thing." Akaine shouted. She gave a mock salute to the rest of the people who were struggling to get up and started to run to the stadium.

Right on her tail was Rufus, who was sprinting, trying to pass her. Akaine frowned in worry. Rufus may not be as d=fast as her, but he did have longer legs which meant longer strides.

 _Ugh, I have to battle this out._

Akaine abruptly turned and before Rufus could react she yelled, "Phoenix Wings of the Sun God!"

Flames sprouted from her arms and she sliced them across the ground in front of her. The ground burned and started to crumble. Akaine then punched the ground with so much force, it cracked. She took a step back and looked at her work. There was now a large, smoking gap between her and Rufus. The only way to get across now was by bridge of flying.

Akaine spread out her flame wings and took a running start. She leapt up into the air and flapped her arms. Akaine had not really mastered the art of flying, but enough to stay in the air. She desperately waved her arms to gain speed. She knew that the smoke screen she created would only stop Rufus for a few moments considering he could use Memory Make to get across the gap.

The stadium was now in sight and she could hear the announcer scream into his microphone, " OH AND AKAINE FROM VIPERS FANG IS HEADING TOWARD THE STADIUM AT AN ASTOUNDING SPEED! WILL RUFUS CATCH UP OR WILL VIPERS FANG SNAG ANOTHER FIRST PLACE?"

Akaine crashed into the wall of the structure, not even bothering to take the entrance. This way was much faster. She slammed down the locket in front of the judges table and jumped down in the middle.

Pumping her fist in response of the crowd, she could see Fairy Tail boring their eyes into her. She raised her voice, "Sorry Fairy Tail, there's a new guild in town and there ain't space for two to play around."

She swore she saw Gray pull back a fist, but Erza grabbed onto his arm and whispered something into his ear. Akaine smirked at them then turned to Zeyla. She could see that she was holding back laughter.

"AND NOW SABERTOOTH HAS MADE IT IN!"

Rufus came in with style of course. A loud bang shook the building and through the dust came Rufus with a necklace, tightly clutched in his hand. He tossed it up to the judges and turned to face Akaine.

"Dirty trick back there little girl." Rufus said.

Akaine glared at him, "Well I'm sorry if I'm more powerful and smarter than you Mr. Memory."

She expected him to blow or yell or attack her but he simply mysteriously smiled and crossed his arms, "You got spunk to try to say that to me."

"Spunk huh?" Akaine frostly said, "If I had more spunk I would burn you into crisp, but considering I have a brain too, I'm not going to."

Rufus said nothing, just tilted his head in a good-bye and calmly walked off the field. She growled at him, already hating that face.

"Spunk? I'll show him what spunk is."

 **Sting POV**

Sting really hated himself right now. Not hate, but loathed himself. Lector would be in a hands of a dangerous but cute stranger in five minutes. In his ran every excuse he could think of.

 _Lector is sick with a dangerous and contagious disease._

 _He ran off and I can't find him_

 _Lector doesn't like girls with black hair_

 _You're face reminds him of his dead friend_

 _He needs to spend more time with Frocsh_

Knock Knock

Sting shoved Lector under his bed before opening the door.

"Stay quiet for me buddy," he whispered.

Sting stood face to face with Zeyla.

"Hey Iberia, ummmm…" he started.

Zeyla sighed, "There's no point in lying to me. I know that Lector is hiding under your bed. The red tail is a big giveaway."

As she was saying this, a paw peeped out and tugged the tail under the bed. Sting laughed nervously.

"Wha-what do you mean? Lector ran off once you won the battle so I don't know where he is now. Sorry."

Zeyla's face didn't change, "So it's ok if I freeze everything under the bed?"

A shriek came from underneath, "NO STING-KUN! DON"T LET HER DO THAT TO ME DON"T LET ME DIE!"

Sting mentally slapped himself in the face. He groaned and motioned Zeyla to underneath the bed.

"Fine, bring him back to midnight. No later or I'm going to hurt you."

Zeyla raised her brows in amusement, "You hurt me? I don't think that's going to happen in a long time, or in your life time. Sorry to burst your bubble."

Sting rolled his eyes, "Just don't kill him okay?"

Zeyla scooped Lector up in her arms and headed to the door. Lector was sobbing and desperately trying to wriggle his way out of her tight grip, "HELP ME STING-KUN. PLEASE."

Sting helplessly shrugged and Lector slumped down in defeat.

Zeyla scratched Lector's head, "Chill out cat. Me and you are going to have some fun."


	14. A Passing Day

Zeyla walked out of the Sabertooth with Lector flailing in her arms.

"Please, I beg of you do not kill me!" Lector cried.

Zeyla put Lector down in front of her a squatted to face him. "Look, I don't know even why you were part of the bet. I thought if Sting heard that you were part of the fight, he wouldn't make the deal, but apparently not soooooo I really don't know what to do now. I was planning to spend the rest of the day relaxing. I guess you can just join me." Zeyla said softly, not wanting to scare he exceed anymore.

Tears stop flowing from Lector's face, "so you're not going to blast me?"

Zeyla rolled her eyes. What was wrong with this cat's mind? "Yes, I'm not going to blast you. Just relax."

She reached forward to pick him up again, but he jumped back. "No need," he said, "You see, I can fly."

"Fly?" Zeyla asked skeptically.

"Yup," Lector announced proudly, "All exceeds can do this. You know what an exceed is right? All dragon slayers have one. You should have one cause you're a dragon slayer, right?"

Zeyla slowly shook her head, "Nope. Never seen one till now, never had one."

Lector opened his mouth but Zeyla cut him before he would give a hour long lecture, "I'll skip the explanation. I got it. Exceeds are cats with wings. Perfect, made my day weirder." She paused a second then continued, "Lets head to my dorm. You can fly to your heart's content."

Now it was Lector's turn to roll his eyes. "Yes high priestess."

"Shut up cat," Zeyla growled, "or I'm gonna blow you for real."

Lector paled and bowed his head. Zeyla started walking toward the dorms with Lector flying right behind her. She could hear whispers on her way.

"Isn't that Sting's exceed?"

"Did she steal him?"

"Poor thing, stuck with a monster like her?"

Zeyla spun on that comment and shoved her face their conversation, "Excuse me sir," she said with a sickly sweet voice, "You know you do have some manners."

The man looked confused but just said a quick thank you.

Zeyla scowled at him, "You know, I didn't mean that as a comment. I meant you have the worst manners I've ever seen," she snarled, "If you're going to talk to someone, don't talk behind them. Talk about them in front of their faces. Or are you just too scared?"

The man frowned and said, "And what are you going to do about it girly? Punch me? Freeze me?"

Zeyla's hand drew back, with frost steaming off of it, "Both."

She crushed her fist into the man's stomach, freezing him into an ice-cube on the spot.

"Ass-hole." She said, spitting on the ice. In the corner of her eye, she could see Lector sweat drop.

"Don't you think that's over doing it a tiny bit?" Lector asked timidly, afraid that she would do the same to him.

Zeyla dusted her hands off and smiled, "Nope. Not at all."

She motioned him to follow her and soon, they were at the door of the dorm. Zeyla knocked on the door three times, then pressed her palm on the door for three seconds and the door swung open to reveal a room bigger then what was outside.

Lector's mouth dropped to the floor. "I-i-impossible! Outside, it's tiny and now,… it's larger then Sabertooth's dorm! How?"  
Zeyla tilted her head back in mock thinking, "Ummm, maybe a few spells here and there. And maybe a few modifications. Not that much. And only Vipers Fang members can enter."

The entrance hall was almost entirely made of grand blue-white marble. The floor was smooth with darker blue swirls that seemed to be ice that was embedded into the ground. Statues stood on carefully carved marble between fancy pillars that held up the balcony of the second floor. A velvet carpet rolled all the way to the grand staircase that split into two that led opposite ways. The railing for the stairs were adorned with a shining gold and at the split held a large bouquet of crystal flowers held in a glass vase that sparkled in the natural sunlight that filtered through the glass ceiling. Doors on the side seemed to lead somewhere else.

"Amazing." Lector whispered in awe.

"Close your mouth before you catch flies." Zeyla joked.

Lector snapped his mouth shut as Hikumu walked in.

"Hey, Zey," he started before Zeyla shot him a glare motioning to the guest, "I mean Iberia. Who's the new guy? I ever knew you had a pet cat."

"A friend that was a part of a bet. He's staying with me 'till midnight. He's not mine, he's Sting's." Zeyla answered.

Hikumu looked a bit surprised but didn't press on, "Cool." He just said.

Zeyla smiled, "I'm calling a pool party and I'll check on the other three later. Tell the others."

Hikumu nodded and started up the stairs.

"Lector, join him. I need to do something. And no, he's not going to kill you." Zeyla said.

Lector trotted up to Hikumu and followed him up the stairs. Zeyla ducked into her room and walked to the mirror that stood in her room. She tapped the cool surface a few times and the surface rippled.

"Juden, Z here. I need a report." She said.

A familiar face framed with messy white hair popped into the mirror. "I'm here."

Zeyla motioned with her hands, "Well, how is it do far? Find any new intel?"

Juden nodded with a grin, "Yup, we located two of the three parts. I think that chain is down below the castle where all the dragon bones are. You know the cave that is connected to underneath the stadium by the rails. And the gold wrap around is on one of the statues in the GMG stadium. It's part of the hair."

Zeyla smiled in approval, "So all that's left is the jade gem. Not surprising considering that it's the most powerful part. Good work. Keep searching. The gem has to be somewhere in the capital."

Juden curtly nodded and then gave a sheepish smile, "So,… how's Yumiya doing? Just wondering."

Zeyla smirked, fully knowing why he asked this question, "She's fine. Beat up a few Fairy Tail people. " she stopped speaking before slyly adding, "I think she mentioned something about you the other day?"

Juden blushed before hastily asking, "What was it? I mean I don't care that much. I don't care at all. I just want to know you see." He rambled on.

Zeyla innocently smiled at him, "Sorry, don't remember and oh would you look at the time. Gotta go now! See some time later. Bye-bye!"

She waved her hand over the mirror, hearing Juden's voice of protest.

"WAIT I KNOW YOU REMEMBER. STOP LYING!" he cried out.

Zeyla stuck out a tongue at him before the mirror screen turned back to normal. She heard a knock on the door.

"Who is it?" she called out.

"Everyone's coming to the pool now. You better get ready." A muffled voice came from behind the door.

Zeyla reequipped into a swimsuit and walked out of her room. She headed to the doors behind the staircase. Her skin was met with a woosh of warm summer air. It danced across her skin as she made her way to the pool.

Most of the guild was already there and Lector was even in the pool splashing water at Akaine and Umie.

Umie started to gather the water in the pool and morphed it into a large ball. She snuck behind Hikumu and was about to throw it when Zeyla held out a hand froze it. Umie frowned at her but Zeyla motioned for her to throw it.

 _It'll hurt more this way_ she mouthed.

A mischievous grin made its way into Umie's face and she chucked it at Hikumu's back. He fell flat into the water, all the air slammed out of him. He pushed himself back to the surface.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?" he screeched in rage, rubbing his back in pain

Umie pointed to Zeyla, "Not my fault. Freezing the water was her doing."  
Zeyla held up her hands in surrender, "Not all my fault. Umie provided the water ball and Neo could've warned you. He's was watching us the entire time."

Hikumu turned to Neo with a pout on his face, "Bro, you could've told me!"

Neo crossed his arms and tried to keep a straight face, "Sorry, but the moment was too sweet to pass off."

"INCOMING!" a voice yelled. A red ball of fur came hurling into the group and exploded the water over everyone. Lector's head popped up out of the water as he started to rant, "You're dorm is amazing. SOOOO MUCH BETTER THEN SABERTOOTH'S! It's so big and there's a pool and it's just AGH."

He swam off happily. Neo turned to her, "Well then."

Zeyla laughed, " I can't wait until he meets Yumiya. She's not really immune to uber cute and fuzzy things. Which in this case would be Lector."

"I'M HERE BABY!" a voice yelled from across the room.

Umie giggled, "Right on time. And in 3…,2…,1… now."

"OMG WHEN DID THIS SUPER DUPER KITTY CAT JOIN US. HE'S SO FUZZY AND CUTE. AND LOOK AT THAT CUTE TAIL. HOLY SHIT HE EVEN HAS WINGS. AWWWW AREN'T YOU SOOOO CUTE? HUH AREN'T YOU?"

Zeyla turned to see Yumiya pinching Lector's cheeks.

"You're such a cutie wootie mmmmm?" Yumiya cooed. Zeyla swore Lector sent a look at her like "Save me now."

Zeyla evilly smiled and shook her head.

The day passed quickly and soon the team went out for dinner. Another hat trick and Zeyla just spoke a few words with the waiter and they got a free supper.

"Eat as much as you want." Zeyla said to Lector, "Oh and Neo send us the info and maps if needed. I don't think we really need to discuss." Neo opened up his archive and started to type.

Akaine stuffed her face with food before shooting a curious look at Lector, "Just a question, how come Sting can compete even he's the guild master?"

Lector swallowed the piece of rib he was chewing one and spoke, "He gave up the title for a while cause he thought he wasn't old or mature to rule the guild. But I think he has an agreement that once he turns 25 he gets the guild master back." Lector explained.

"Oh and Lector," Zeyla asked causally, "Do you know where Sting got his earring?"

Lector froze at this question and slowly replied, "Why?"

"I thought it was a pretty cool earring and I thought if it wasn't custom made then I wanted to buy a pair."

Lector relaxed and looked her into the eye, "Not sure, but I think they picked it up at a street-side flea market."

Zeyla bore her eyes into him and read his thoughts.

 _He got it from a crystal cave deep in the Forbidden Mountains. Rogue has one too and he found it when he stumbled on it in a forest._

Zeyla smiled at him, "Thanks Lector. You know, you want some dessert?"

* * *

Night fell quickly and the lamps lit up the dark streets. Zeyla headed back to the Sabertooth dorm and knocked on the heavy wooden doors.

The doors flung open to reveal a very worried Sting.

"ARE YOU OKAY? DO YOU HAVE ANY SCRATCHES? ARE YOU BLEEDING?" Sting asked in panic.

Lector huffed in annoyance, "I'm fine Sting-kun. Iberia is really nice."

Sting looked up in surprise. He pushed Lector inside, "Thanks for taking care of him." He said softly.

Zeyla said nothing, just fixated her gaze on the dangling diamond earring on Sting's earring.

 _I need that earring and I'm getting it no matter what gets in my way._

a/n  
sorry this was sort of like a filler


	15. The Dragon Graveyard

"We now have day two's matches all set up. Please send up one member to fight for you! The match-up's will be absolutely random."

Zeyla scanned her team-mates, "I don't want Akaine competing, nor Yumiya; we need you guys for later. It's one of the boy's turn."

Neo and Hikumu exchanged glances before immediately pointing at each and saying, "He'll do it." They glared at each other and tried to see who go the longest before blinking.

Zeyla sighed in annoyance, "Hikumu you go. No buts, why if's or any excuse. Go now."

Hikumu gave her puppy-dog face he knew she would fall for but Zeyla turned away, knowing if she saw it, she would melt. "No Hikumu. Go before I freeze you.

Hikumu groaned in defeat and walked down to the field. Down there to join them was Orga, Gray, Jura, Hikari, Ichiya, Beth, and Rocker.

"Please listen up for the pair-up's. We have Sabertooth against Blue Pegasus, Mermaids Heel against Quarto Cerberus, Vipers Fang B Team against Lamina Scale and Fairy Tail against Vipers Fang A Team! First up we will have Vipers Fang and Lamina Scale!"

Jura calmly walked out with his eyes closed, like he was meditating. Hikari stiffly walked out to the middle. The two faced each other and bowed.

Jura raised his eyes and flicked a finger. Stone pillars shot up from the ground and went to hit Hikari.

Hikari skillfully dodged and landed a few hundred feet away, "Not bad Jura. I guess your title isn't fake." He then swiped his hand upwards.  
"Heaven Breakdown."

The ground rumbled beneath their feet and began to collapse. Jura started to fall into the hole created by the blast. Desperately waving his hands, he tried to mend to hole and prevent himself from falling any farther. Earth platforms jutted out and Jura finally stopped a hundred feet beneath the surface.

Hikari jumped down and landed on the platform.

Jura looked at him hardly, giving him a good evaluation. Hikari looked amused and said, "You done looking old man?"

Hikari placed his two hands together, only leaving his index and middle finger spread out.

"GRAND CHARIOT!"

Jura looked up to see seven golden magic seals in form of the big dipper. Jura then quickly crossed his arms to create a protective dome. The seals released its power and hit Jura's hastily made shield. Dust filled the confined space and Hikari crouched where he was, listening for any movement.

A large stone spear flew toward his way and Hikari rolled out of the way on the last second. If he was a little bit late, the spear would have sliced through his arm.

Jura walked through the dust, calm and collected as ever.

"I would have to say you're not so bad yourself. Not many can take on one of the ten wizard saints. Alas, you end here."

Jura clapped his hands together but stopped when he heard Hikari laughing.

"I don't think so. At least not yet." Hikari said.

He bowed down and pointed his hands downward, with all his fingers closed except for his middle and index finger. He slowly started to move his hand up until it was pointing upwards. The clouds, once white, started to turn deep purple and spun around him like a cyclone.

The skies darkened into night and an ominous howl of wind swept through. A glowing light started to form in the center of the clouds. Jura's eyes widened when he realized what he was about to do. He had once felt this magic fighting Mystogan last year.

"True Heavenly Body Magic: SEMA!" Hikari yelled.

A blast of pure energy, surrounding a humongous meteor came showering down to earth. It blasted down at Jura, creating a large crater in its wake. The force alone was enough to blow Jura off the platform and into the bottom of the hole. The stadium was silent when seeing the outcome.

"Oh dear…" the announcer said in a small voice.

The viewing lacrima zoomed into Jura to see that at the last moment, he had brought up a defensive shield to protect himself from the impact. He was out, but still alive.

"I DON'T BELIEVE IT, BUT VIPERS FANG IS THE WINNER!"

Hikari bowed as the spectators cheered for him. He walked out of the field and cast a questioning glance at Zeyla.

She nodded.

 _Enough to beat him but not overdone._

"We now have Hikumu of Vipers Fang A Team versus Gray of Fairy Tail. This is going to be a good match between the defending title and the noobs."

Gray coolly stood in front of Hikumu who was wrapped in a white cloak. "Too cold for you?" he mocked at Hikumu.

Hikumu said nothing and just waited for the gong to signal to start.

BOOM

Gray held his fist back, "Ice make cage!"

A large cage appeared over Hikumu and was about to drop when Hikumu held his hand over his head and shot black flames at it, vaporizing it.

He then stood there waiting for Gray to make the next attack. Gray wasted no time and slammed one fist onto of the other.

"Ice make eagle!"

"Ice make tiger!"

"Ice make bear!"

"Ice make Lion!"

"Ice make horse!"

All five ice animals stood by Gray's side waiting for their master's order. Gary pointed at Hikumu and they started to run over, their only intention was to make a hit.

The eagle soared above, the liger and lion speeding ahead, while the bear lumbered behind, raising its paw, waiting to deliver a blow.

Hikumu pressed his palms together as if in prayer and the bright afternoon sky turned to night.

The once blue sky was now pure black, like a black hole. No stars shone across it, just an empty void of nothing. Hikumu split his hands and brought one up in the direction of the eagle and the other in the lions and tigers way. The blackness responded to his command and shot toward the ice animals. As soon as they touched, the ice melted to the ground and disappeared.

Hikumu slashed his hand and the horse that was charging into him also vanished.

He turned to Gray, "My darkness can get rid of anything and crush it into nothingness. Nothing can escape it, even the brightest of lights. Your insignificant ice stands no chance against my magic."

Gray growled in frustration, but before he could react, Hikumu pointed at him and all the shadows and darkness that existed in the arena gathered together in one ball onto Hikumu's open palm.

"I like to call this your end." Hikumu said in dryly.

He flung the ball at Gray and it caught him in the stomach. The ball didn't even push him back, instead, spread out on impact and took over him, taking control of every part of his body.

Gray started to convulse on the ground, twitching and withering away. Hikumu stood there unmoving. He could hear a voice from the stand.

"Please stop. Don't hurt my Gray-sama!" Hikumu turned to see a woman with wavy blue hair tucked beneath a Russian style hat.

Hikumu did not answer, just twisted his hand a bit more. Gray started to choke up blood and his eye's bulged out. Frost steamed out of his body like the shadows were squeezing it out of him.

GONG

The bell signaled the end of the match. Hikumu loosened the tension on his hand and Gray fell to the ground, his body limp.

The audience said nothing, horrified, amazed, and stunned at what they had just seen.

"WELL, VIPERS FANG HAS JUST WON AND AMAZING VICTORY OVER FAIRY TAIL!" the announcer roared.

The crowd recovered from their shock and furiously clapped. Zeyla smiled, seeing that the match was open and headed back to the dorm to make a call.

 _BACK AT VIPERS FANG DORM_

Zeyla tapped the mirror a few times and saw Juden's face.

"Have you found anything new?" she asked.

Juden shook his head, "Finding the gem should've been easy considering how much magic it gives off. I think that the royal family knows what it is and has masked the presence. We're trying to find it. I'm not so sure where to start."

Zeyla slowly nodded.

"Can you ask Neo to send a map of the Royal Castle to see if there are any hidden rooms or storages where they could possibly hide them?" he asked Zeyla

"Sure." She responded, "Make sure you find it soon. There are only a certain number of days in the GMG. If we go over, it would be too suspicious."

"Okay, got it." Juden replied.

Zeyla closed the conversation just as the door knocked. She glanced at the security lacrima to see who it was.  
 _Yumiya_

"Come in." she called out.

Yumiya entered holding her bow in her hand, "Neo said you needed to see me?"

Zeyla smiled in acknowledgment, "Ah yes, today's little game is coming up. Make sure you have you archery skills in check."

* * *

 **Juden's POV**

Juden stood at a door at the base of the castle. He turned to Arashu and Moyasu, "Who's up to invade a royal family of their most prized possession?"

Juden kicked open the door whose hinges where rusting and cracked. He slowly descended down the long flight of stairs with white electricity dancing across his palm. No traps awaited them, but he saw many skeletons along the way down.

"Somehow they died," Moyasu murmured confused, "but how, there are no traps."

A loud boom was heard behind them and they snapped around. The door that Juden had kicked down was now back in its place. Arashu sprinted back up and tugged at it. When there was no avail, he started slicing it with his sword and sending large blasts of wind. The door still held.

"We're stuck." Arashu announced.

Juden looked back at the decaying skeletons, "Well that explains the death."

The trio walked down the stairs, each footstep echoing across the narrow path. They finally made it to the bottom revealing a large cavern filled with bones. Dragon bones.

"It should be on the Jade Dragon." Juden said, "But still be careful. The royal family put it here for a reason."

They made their way across the large space and came face to face with one of the largest skeletons. This was it, the jade dragon. A golden chain could be seen glinting in the eye socket.

Juden raced across and cautiously looked into the eye socket for any traps. He then tentatively stuck his hand into the skull and picked up the chain. Nothing happened and he took a sigh of relief.

That's when things started to go wrong.


	16. The Jade Dragon

**Juden's POV**

He thought that everything was going right. Seriously, the door rising from the ground and then locking so they were trapped, creepy skeletons everywhere he looked, and dragon bones here and there, and now.

Yup, perfect day.

As soon as he removed his hand from the skull, the ground gave an ominous rumble that shook the cavern from ceiling to floor. The bones in the grave started to give off a green glow. Juden, Moyasu, and Arashu all stood back to back with their hands up, ready to take on the enemy.

One tiny problem, their enemy was the dragons.

The bones rose from the ground and started to reassemble themselves back into their own original structure. Skulls joined with spines, ribs connecting together. The result was an almost impossible to beat army of the living dead. How much worse could it get?

Arashu held up his sword, Moyasu already had a handful of poison, and Juden's body crackled alive with white lightning.

"To hell we go." He announced.

They all charge in different directions, each determined to demolish anything that got in their path of getting out. Juden sent out large bolts of energy, hoping that it would do some damage if any. Sadly, his efforts were in waste. The "dead" dragon didn't seem a bit fazed and kept lumbering towards him. Again and again, he shot lightning, even going to light, praying that he could bring the structure of bones down.

"How in the fucking hell are supposed to kill something that's already dead?" Juden yelled over his shoulder.

"I don't know! I'm barely staying alive here." Arashu replied. He sent a large gust of wind through his sword and aimed it at the skull. Upon impact, the skull fell off the spine and clattered to the ground. The dragon skeleton fell apart from there. Arashu slowly shuffled to pile of bones and gave it a tentative poke. The bones didn't move.

"Guys," Arashu said, "Aim for separating the skull from the body. The skull's like the control for the dragon. Once apart, they can't function."

Moyasu started to shoot his poison at the skull, dissolving it when hit. Juden listened to Arashu's advice and started to aim for the head.

Soon, all the bones were back on the ground.

"Now we're safe." Juden said in a sigh of relief. His words were spoken too soon.

"WHO DARES TO WAKEN ME?" a loud roar echoed through the cavern.

Juden silently cursed under his breath. When was his luck going to change? The trio turned to see the pile of bones where the Jade dragon was gone. In its place stood a ghostly and rather buff dragon.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it." Moyasu hissed.

"YOU HAVE ATKEN THE ROYAL FAMILY'S PRZED CHAIN OF THE JADE NECKLACE. RETURN IT NOW AND YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SUFFER THE WRATH OF A REAL DRAGON."

Juden's clutch on the chin grew tighter. There was no way he was giving up this chain. One, he already came this far for it, and two, Zeyla would have his head if returned empty-handed.

"Sorry big boy," he said smirking at the dragon, "No can do or my leader's gonna have my hide. Can't let that happen."

The dragon looked surprised that he had been denied then laughed, "VERY WELL. FEEL THE PAIN NOW."

The dragon lifted its hand and started to bring it down. Juden's vision was now just a very large claw before a gust of wind blew him out of the way.

"Keep your head man!" Arashu called out.

Juden shook his head to clear it and turned to the dragon, "I don't know what's your problem. The royal family left you in this dumb-ass cave for what, centuries? And you're still trying to protect this chain? What have they done for you? Lock you up?"

The dragon looked uncomfortable but spoke, "I am the Jade Dragon. My duty is to protect the prized possession of the Royal Family. It is my job."

He said this and raised his hand up through the ceiling.

 _Through the ceiling_

 ** _Through,_** _without even breaking the rock._

Juden's eyes widen in realization.

The Jade Dragon saw this and said, "So you are ready to give up and die here?"

Juden grinned, "Sorry old man, but I don't think so." He dangled the chin in front of him, "You want this? Come and get it."

Moyasu fidgeted behind him, "Um Juden? Have you lost your mind? This is a twenty foot tall dragon out for blood. Provoking it isn't one of your smartest ideas."

Juden shot him a look.

 _I have a plan. Sit and wait._

The dragon leaped forward and swiped a claw in Juden's direction. He could hear his friend's gasps of horror.

Juden still stood there alive, not even a single scratch. "You done yet?"

The dragon growled in anger. "I can't harm me," Juden said smugly, "Isn't that right _spirit?"_

The dragon stiffened when he heard this.

Juden continued, "You're a ghost. You can't cause any damage, let alone kill. I'm guessing your looks were enough to scare off the others who went after the chain. Sorry man, but you aren't fooling us."

The rock above them started to rumble.

Juden smiled at this, "Oh look, our chit chat is over. Looks like Hikumu has made an exit for us."

As soon the words were out of his mouth, a hole crumpled out and the blue sky could be seen far away.

"Time to go boys. Arashu, we need a lift."

Arashu swiped his arms in a cross and the group could feel their beneath their feet push up. They started to rise off the ground and up the clear blue sky. The beautiful sky which had fresh air, not some musty dragon smell.

"Good-bye old man. Hope we meet again!" Juden called down to the Jade dragon. The only response he got was a large roar.

After a few moments, they had reached the top. The crowd had already left for the day and the trio fell out of the hole, tired.

"Why did Zeyla have to choose us?" Arashu started to complain.

"I need to slap her in the face," Moyasu said, agreeing.

Juden snorted, "If you did, she would probably blast your head off, burn you, then freeze you, then find every way to torture you for the rest of your life. I don't think that's a good idea."

He then looked up at the statues. In the hair of one gleamed gold. He slumped back down on the ground.

"Want to get that one tomorrow?" he asked.

The only response was a moan.

"If I was to get that," Moyasu, "There would be no stadium the next day. I wouldn't even care to preserve the place just get it and get the hell out of here."

Juden laughed. At least they still had spirit. He stood up and stretched his body.

"Let's leave it until tomorrow then." He said, "But I'm hiding from Zeyla. No way am I getting a slap in the face."


	17. Target

The games were held off for awhile in order to repair the battlefield. Vipers Fang grouped back together at the dorms to discuss strategies.

Meeting at the discussion table, Neo pulled up his archive.

"Next Game is called Target." He said announcing, "There will be 100 targets in the air. The goal is the shoot as many down as possible before they run out. Some with be moving, some standstill, others can attack. Standstills ones are worth one point, moving are worth three, and attacking ones are worth five."

Zeyla turned to Yumiya, "This is when you come in. There is also an additional perk to this that the announcers will not explain but are in the rules. If you manage to take down a player, you get their point, so don't be hesitant to attack."

Yumiya kept a serious face and nodded.

"I got this." She said.

* * *

"AND IT IS TIME FOR THE NEXT GAME! PLEASE SEND ONE LUCKY TEAM MEMBER TO COMPETE IN…TARGET!"

Zeyla nodded at Yumiya and she made her way down with her bow tightly clutched in her hand. From Fairy Tail sent Erza, Sabertooth Orga, and Mermaids Heel Kagura. This was all the Yumiya worried about. The rest of the players she didn't care.

"RULES. THEY ARE FOR YOU TO FIGURE OUT. GENERAL RULES ARE APPLIED, NO MAIMING OR KILLING. STARTIN IN 3…, 2…, 1…. GO!"

Round targets floated in the sky, to high to reach. Beneath them were small platforms, only big enough for one person to barely stand on.

Yumiya charged for one platform and started to reequip into a new armor. Sky bird she liked to call it. It gave her wings that she could use to fly in and light weight armor that wouldn't weigh her down and still flexible.

Leaping from the platform, she spread her wings and flew to the targets. Notching ten arrows, she aimed for the moving targets.

BAM

All hit the bull's eye, dead center.

"Oh and Yumiya from Vipers Fang A Team has gotten a head start with thirty points already. Meanwhile Erza from Fairy Tail has taken down five still targets, 3 moving targets and 1 attacking one giving her 19 points."

Yumiya glanced over at Erza seeing that she was in her Heavenly Wheel armor. Dozens of swords floated above her ready to fly at the targets.

Yumiya jumped from platform to platform trying to reach Erza before she aimed. Erza let go of her swords.

 _No time to get there_

Yumiya notched arrow after arrow, hitting down every sword from its path. She glided toward Erza and pulled out a sword and swung at her.

Erza narrowly blocked her blow and sparks flew from both swords. They narrowed their eyes at each other, seizing the skill and stamina. Exchanging looks, they ran off in different directions.

"It seems that Erza and Yumiya have placed some sort of agreement. I wonder what that is." Zeyla mused, watching from the stands.

Yumiya, now heading away from the targets, started to head to the other contestants. She whipped out a black arrow and sent it flying towards Blue Pegasus and Quarto Cerberus. The arrow, upon impact, exploded into black power and quickly liquefied into sticky glue. Both people tried to tug their hands and feet off, but the glue stuck preventing them from moving.

Erza leaped off in the opposite direction and changed into her Lightning Empress Armor. Bring down her sword, she shot pure white energy in Vipers Fang B Team and Lamina Scale. Both never stood a chance. Erza and Yumiya came back together and stood back to back. All that was left was Sabertooth and Mermaids Heel.

"I call dibs on Sabertooth." Yumiya called. Erza nodded and wasted no words. Both pushed off of the platform and head toward the enemy.

Yumiya reequipped out of her armor and into her normal attire. She stood in front of Orga, now slowly approaching warily. She knew he was a god slayer. Orga grinned at her.

"My, my, my, what do we have here? A little girl wanting to eat some of my lightning?"

Yumiya started to feel her blood boil. Sure she might be skinny and bones and short and all of the above to make her look younger then she really was, but still! She hated it when people underestimated her.

"Me eat your lightning? I don't think so, eat some of mine!" She pulled out a staff with a glowing golden tip at the end and directed it at him.

"Staff of Zeus!" Golden lightning blew from the tip of the staff and flew towards Orga. He didn't even seem fazed, just waited for it to hit him. He thought he could eat it after all.

Wrong.

The lightning hit Orga's mouth. Instead of consuming it, it shot pain through his entire body, shocking every part down to the bone. Yumiya leaped to him.

"Sorry muscle guy, no one can eat this lightning. It comes straight from the heavens. The only guy can eat this is a god itself, not a wanna be god." She held out a fist and punched Orga in the face, causing him to fall of the stone platform and land on the dirt ground with a loud thump.

She could hear Sabertooth groan along with the fans. Yumiya smiled inside. This is what you get when you underestimate someone.

In the corner of her eye, she could see Kagura in the dust.

 _Shit_

This meant Erza had already finished her off and was out to get her. The unspoken deal was that they both would get rid of the other people, then it was one man for itself. There was no way Yumiya was going to let her win. She would lose both the game and her pride.

Pulling out her good ol rusty arrow, she began repeatedly shooting targets, hoping she could surpass Erza. Sparing a split second, she glanced up at the leader boards.

 _Fairy Tail : 115 pts_

 _Vipers Fang: 120_

There was one target left, one that Erza was already headed to with a too big of a head start. If she made it, they would tie.

 _Not enough time, not enough time._

Yumiya took a deep breath and pulled out a bow. A very special bow. It glowed a brilliant white and seemed to hold the power of the moon and stars. The arrow that was notched with it was also specially made.

The wood came from the Haunted Forests of Lior, polished and dried in the lava where the dragons used to live. The stone arrow was found deep in the oceans where no life resided but one very large and angry turtle. It had come from the shell. Most important of all was the cock feathers.

The feathers were from the snow phoenix, specially plucked when it had came down to earth, the first time in one thousand years. It had taken months to track it down plus another month to gain the feathers. Gathering the materials for this bow was indeed a difficult task.

But it was worth it for the Telikós Bow. Never missing and delivering a huge amount of magic power, this bow was one of the best that ever existed.

Yumiya closed her eyes and calmed her mind.

 _One shot that's all I need._

Narrowing her eyes, she focused onto Erza. The audience was quiet and the tension was thick to see who would win the game.

The tip of the arrow started to glow, storing up and enormous amount of power. When she felt it could hold no more, she released it.

The arrow flew a straight line with incredible speed towards it's intended target. Erza didn't even have time to move.

A scream and a thud was all that Yumiya needed to hear. She grinned in victory. Hopping to the last target, she slammed her fist intothe center, cracking the material into two clean halves. It seemed to fall in slow motion, gently crumbling to the ground.

Yumiya raised her fists proudly as she shot Zeyla a winning smile. Zeyla returned the smile with a salute, only spreading out her index and middle finger.

 _Good-job, I couldn't have done better myself._

 **Juden's POV**

He was sitting in the balcony along with Zeyla and the rest of the group. Folding his hands, he watched the game start. Juden sighed for the hundredth time. He wanted to get the mission over with.

As if answering his prayers, he felt a tap on his shoulder. Zeyla stood behind him and mouthed, "Go now."

Juden motioned for Moyasu and Arashu to come with him and the headed out of the room.

Gathering outside on the walkway that connected the statues, Juden signaled for Arashu to start.

Arashu flicked his arm upwards and the three flew up to the four grand statues.

Juden called over to Arashu and Moyasu, "It should be on the only lady statue."

The trio landed on the statue closest to the ocean and started to run around, trying to find where the golden spiral may be. Precious minutes ticked by.

 _Shoot the game is going to end soon._

He started to communicate to Yumiya.

 _Stall for more time please. We can't find it_

 _WHAT?! I THOUGHT YOU SAID YOU HAD FOUND IT, IN THE HAIR RIGHT?_

 _I can't see it today. You know it's sort of hard finding it on a very large stature right?_

 _Ugh fine. I'll team up to create some noise and time. You owe me._

Juden sighed in relief. Yumiya could only buy them a few more minutes time wise, but she also had caused a big distraction. He could hear the crowd roar as they found out that the two rivaling teams had agreed to work together.

The three started to scramble, hoping and pleading to god that they would find the golden piece to the necklace before the games ended. If not, they would be in trouble. As in Royal-Family-will-want-too-kill-you trouble. He didn't want that to happen.

As he was climbing the head, his finger brushed up against something cool. Juden glance down and saw underneath his finger was a tiny spiral of gold.

 _Found you!_

"Guys over here! I found it!"

Moyasu and Arashu hurried over. They tugged and pulled but the gold would not come apart. Moyasu squinted at the stone beneath it.

"Under the light of the new moon, I shall be set free." Moyasu said, reading the inscription carved into the stone.

"What the fuck? A new moon has no light! And it's two weeks away! WE DO NOT HAVE TWO FUCKING WEEKS. WE HAVE TWO FUCKING MINUTES!" Juden roared.

Arashu stood there quietly thinking. "Zeyla." He said simply.

Moyasu and Juden turned to him, confused, "Zeyla? How the hell is Zeyla supposed to do with this?"

Arashu raised a brow, "She's a moon dragon slayer. New moon. She probably has some kind of spell to do with new moon. I'm sure we can cheat our way into this one." He said explaining.

Moyasu sighed, "So we came up here for nothing."

Arashu smirked, "Not entirely, we always can mess up the game a bit. You know, shift the platforms when they're about to land, change direction of their attack, and move the targets so they miss. Not that much of a waste coming up here I say."

A mischievous look crept up onto Juden's face.

"Let's mess up a game, shall we?"


	18. The Unexpected

The sky was clear with no clouds to cover the waning moon. Four people stood at the base of the stadium looking up to the sky. Dressed in black, they pulled a feathered masquerade mask over their faces.

"Ready?" a female voice whispered.

"Always Zeyla." A muffled voice came from behind her. The four leaped onto the statues, each landing on a different one.

 _You guys ready?_

They all nodded. All four wizards pressed the palm of their right hand onto the staff, willing their power to flow through. Soon all the staff's began to glow white. Zeyla concentrated letting all her magic power flow out of her and into the staff. This is what the four statues were here for.

Her moon magic was soon drained and when she only had a little left-

"NEW MOON, AWAKEN!"

The glowing moon started to fade, disappearing. All the light in the sky diminished and soon the arena was a pitch black, the only light was from the staffs. The light joined together at one center point of the arena.

Zeyla could feel the huge amount of power in the light. This was the power of the new moon, the new start. She grimly pushed on.

"ARGH!"

The last bit of magic drained out of the four. Zeyla held up her hands at the sky. The moon was gone. They had cheated their way into a new moon. The staff of the woman statue shone and lit up.

Juden jumped from his statue to Zeyla's.

"Is it coming off?" he asked.

Zeyla quickly turned, "GET BACK TO YOUR STATUE BEFORE IT"S TOO LATE! GO NOW!"

Juden jumped up in surprise but didn't move. "Wh-wh-what?"

"IDIOT! GET BACK NOW OR THE SPELL WON"T FINISH! IF IT DOESN"T AND ONLY GOES HALFWAY-"

Zeyla was cut off by the sound of rumbling. The statues rose from the ground, prying themselves from the ground and walking upright. Each step they took shook the ground.

"Why isn't the whole town awake?" Arashu asked.

Zeyla grimly shook her head and pointed to their surroundings, "Time has been frozen for everyone but us."

Indeed. The dust that was kicked up seconds ago was frozen in the air. The ocean beneath them was in mid-crash onto the beaches and the leaves of the trees were stopped. There were no sounds, no movement.

Zeyla turned and snarled at Juden, "BAKA! I TOLD YOU TO GO BACK!"

Juden shrank away from Zeyla, "I'm sorry…"

Zeyla sighed in frustration, "Now we have to beat the statues. And if we somehow manage to, we then have to create more in replacement."

The other three stood back awkwardly. "Each take one your own statue. We need to get rid of them before they get completely charged up."

Moyasu opened his mouth in question, "Zey, we're already low on magic. How are we going to-"

"Open your second origin. I don't care about the risks. We can't let this opportunity pass by."

They all nodded. Holy golden light shone from beneath them, blowing their hair upwards.

"SECOND ORIGIN: RELEASE!"

The team could feel power coursing through their veins, charging them with new power. However, something was different.

Their eyes glowed red and their hair stuck up as if shocked by electricity. Their bodies were surrounded by a glow of black light and their hands were crackling in blue energy. This was their second origin, so powerful, the devil had handed them this power himself.

This was the Demons Second Origin.

All of them roared and charged into the statues. Zeyla spread out her wings and slammed her hands together in a prayer.

"DEVIL'S PRAYER!"

Black and red energy formed around her hands and began to grow bigger until it formed a back. Zeyla threw it at the statues face, passing through the hoop. The statue stumbled back a little.

It moaned a bit but shuffles forward.

"Must…get rid…of intruders." The lady statue mumbled, "Must get rid of intruders. Must get rid…"

Zeyla growled in anger. Her hand closed into a fist except her middle and index finger. She crossed them into a x and placed them in front of her face. Breathing in, Zeyla concentrated all of energy into this one shot.

 _I only have one chance. We were already weakened a great deal. If I miss, it's all over. All this work for nothing._

Zeyla narrowed her eyes, aiming for the heart of the statue, where the magic resided, controlling the movements of the statue. This was the statue that also powered the others. If she could bring this one down, the fight would end and they could get the golden spiral.

Zeyla let go, keeping her eyes on the dark energy the entire time.

 _Please Demons Heart, destroy the light and bring forth the treasure._

The black light flew forward so fast, there was no reaction time. It hit right in the center, shattering the stone into a fine dust. The dust rained down and coated the statue into bits. All the other statues stopped moving as if in trance.

Juden, Arashu and Moyasu all collapsed in exhaustion.

"Is it over?" Moyasu croaked out.

Zeyla did not answer, only held out her necklace. It was the compass necklace that Natsu had given her such a long time ago when they were kids.

 _Thank you Natsu. Just this once, I think you have given me a useful gift._

Zeyla held it out and chanted

 _See me through the mirror_

 _Let the stars shine through_

 _For the Ultimate Power shall not rest_

 _Find me location_

 _Beam the holy light onto thou_

 _And bring me part of the Ultimate Power_

When Zeyla stopped speaking, the clouds opened up s if the heavens had come down. A white light shone down into the pile of rubble and the golden spiral of the necklace lifted itself out. It floated in the air and Zeyla slowly approached it.

She grabbed it out of the air and examined it. It was a gold Chinese dragon it its tail in a curl. It seemed as if it was supposed to be grabbing something.

"The jade ball of course." Zeyla said softly, "It's supposed to clutching the jade, the only part we are missing now."

She turned over to Juden, "You have to find the last part. That's all we need."

Juden nodded in understanding.

Zeyla them clapped her hands and placed them on the floor. The rubble rose up from the ground and started to reassemble themselves. Soon, the stadium was back to normal.

"Hey Z? We're gonna head back to home base." Arashu called out. Zeyla gave a curt nod and headed out for the streets.

The starts shone bright and she stopped by a hill looking over the near-by ocean.

The long grass rustles in the gentle night breeze. The cool air was fresh and seemed to kiss her skin. Zeyla leaned back onto the tree staring at the stars.

"I thought I was the only one that took night walks."

Zeyla spun around with her arms raised in front of her. The shadow stepped from behind the tree.

 _Sting_

Zeyla dropped her defensive stance and relaxed, "Oh, it's just you."

Sting rose his eyebrows in mock surprise, "Just me? I am insulted by your word Miss. Iberia."

Zeyla didn't laugh, "So why are you out here too?"

Sting shrugged, "Same question for you."

Zeyla's mouth twitched "Couldn't sleep. I had some…major and eventful stuff happen and I need to clear my mind for awhile."

Sting smiled, "I could say the same. I am traumatized that a girl like you managed to beat me and steal something from me."

Zeyla growled, "I did not steal Lector from you! It was a part of a bet that you agreed to!"

Sting lowered his eyes and lightly laughed, "I didn't mean Lector. You took something else and I think I need it back. But you know on second thought, keep it."

Zeyla tilted her head in confusion. What did he mean? Sting smiled a bit and he started to lean in and Zeyla started to notice some details.

Was Sting's body this sculpted before? And why did his arrogant look suddenly look gentle?

Zeyla's breath hitched and she could feel her face turn red.

 _Wh-wh-whats happening?_

Sting closed the space between them and placed his hands on her waist. Zeyla didn't know what controlled her and she moved her hands onto his shoulders. Their faces where now only centimeters apart and she could feel Sting's warm, sweet breath on her cheek.

"Iberia," Sting whispered in her ear, "you've stolen my heart."

He pressed his lips onto hers and Zeyla's world just exploded. His lips tasted of heaven and bliss. They were so soft and seemed to perfectly match hers. Fireworks imaginarily exploded when their lips met and Zeyla could feel light-headed. Was this how it felt to be in love?

Zeyla could not think straight anymore and pushed back, kissing Sting back. They clutched each other tighter like this was their last moment of their life.

She then heard a voice speak.

 _Remember your goal. REMEMBER! Don't lose your head to a boy who doesn't matter._

Zeyla's eyes shot open and she pushed Sting off of her.

"Sorry, I wasn't thinking." She mumbled with her head down. She brushed a strand of black hair away from her face. She could also see that Sting's face was quite red.

He shook his hands in front of him, "Yeah, sorry too!" he frantically said, "I wasn't thinking! Ummm, I think I lost my mind there." He ducked his head in embarrassment to hid the red on his face.

Zeyla was pleased, but at the same time felt a little bit disappointed. So the kiss meant nothing? She turned her back and started to walk down the hill.

At the bottom, she turned back and saw Sting looking up at the sky.

"Hey Sting!" she called out.

Sting looked down and saw her waving up at him.

"I'll see you tomorrow! Take care and don't lose against Vipers Fang!"

Sting smiled. This was one special girl to love.


	19. Alysído

"IT IS TIME FOR THE TEAM BATTLES!"

Zeyla grimly sat there waiting for the teams to be announced. This was to be random, so it was all fair game.

"FIRST UP WE HAVE IBERIA AND AKAINE FROM VIPERS FANG A TEAM AND NATSU AND LUCY FROM FAIRY TAIL!"

Zeyla didn't flinch just looked up to see Natsu all pumped up and jumping all around while Lucy looked depressed about fighting this match.

"So, what do you think of the match ups?"

Pumpkin-kun laughed, "I think Vipers Fang is in trouble. Their magic is the exact opposites. I think Fairy Tail may win this thing. Their magic is very compatible."

Zeyla smirked at the comment. She and Akaine jumped down from the balcony and she unsheathed her sword.

"Bring it on, former strongest guild!" she called out.

Natsu's face got angry, "What do you mean ice queen? We ARE the strongest guild and that's how it's gonna stay."

Zeyla glared at him, "I don't think so."

GONG

Zeyla and Akaine wasted no time and started to charge at the Fairy Tail Team.

"Open Gate of the Lion! Leo!"

Loke walked out of his gate and bowed at Lucy, "How may I assist you mistress?"

Lucy pointed at Zeyla, "Take her down! Natsu is going to fight Akaine!"

Loke nodded and started to run at her. Zeyla stood there and didn't move waiting for him to come to her. When Loke was about to hit her, he bounced off like a shield was there.

His eyes widened in surprise.

 _She must have some kind of magic shield._

Zeyla still did not move and just waited for Loke to make the next move.

"Com'n Lion boy, you're the king of the Zodiac Spirits! Show me your power, or are you too weak against me?" Zeyla taunted at him.

Loke raised his hands above his head as a light in the shape of a lion grew larger and larger.

"Regulus Impact!"

It hurled at Zeyla and she just flipped her hand and the magic rebounded back at Loke. Hitting him directly in the center of the chest, Loke was flung backward into the walls of the stadium.

"LOKE!" Lucy yelled with obvious concern in her voice.

 _How weak. Never show fear or panic in front of an enemy. It shows that you are unconfident in your magic._

Zeyla drew her fists back behind her. Her hands began to glow silver and Loke was encased in ice.

Lucy turned to her in anger, "You hurt my friend. That was unnecessary! You-you monster. You bitch."

Lucy's eyes seemed to turn gold as if the stars were shining in them. She pulled the rest of the keys out of her pocket and started to chant.

 _Oh spirits of above and below_

 _Through the seas, land, sky, and space_

 _Come together in unity and fight as one_

 _Grant the power of the stars upon me_

 _Combine all eighty eight stars_

 _Let the sun burn brilliantly bright_

 _And the darkness will shrink away from the light_

 _ISSHO NI!_

The keys floated and were pulled out of Lucy's grasp and came together in a circle formation like a halo above her head. They glowed golden, like the light from the heavens. Starting to spin, they soon were rotating around so fast, it seemed the halo was solid.

The keys finally stopped, and Zeyla could see that the keys had formed a gold ring, which Lucy promptly caught in her hand as soon as it fell.

"You are in trouble because Fairy Tail never loses." Lucy said loudly. Zeyla could hear the cheering from the balcony of Fairy Tail.

"Oh really?" Zeyla shot back.

Lucy smirked at her, her eyes blazing, determined to beat the girl that stood in her way. Lucy put the gold ring on her head. It floated above her head like a halo, and angel wings unfolded from her back.

"This is one of the most powerful celestial magic ever. I now have all the power of the Zodiac Keys. I don't think you can beat that, huh. After all-"

She trailed off as she saw that Zeyla was laughing. Zeyla kept laughing at her. The most that attack could do was equivalent to one of her keys.

Zeyla tried standing up straight and regained her composure.

"Sorry, um Lucy was it? That comment was too funny. You're a celestial mage right?"

Lucy slowly nodded, not sure where the conversation was going.

"I'll play along with you then. I won't use my ice dragon slayer magic. After all, it won't be fair then?"

Lucy looked confused, but her eyes widened as soon as Zeyla reached to her side and pulled out a ring jingling of metal clashing against each other.

Keys.

Diamond Keys.

Platinum Keys with different colored jewels embedded into them.

Black Keys.

White keys.

Zeyla spread them out between her fingers and tapped her chin, pretending to be thought. She then smiled with a mock attitude and pulled out a platinum key with a black jewel on it.

"How about this one?"

Lucy shook her head, "How is that possible? There are only silver and gold. How can there more? They must be fake."

Zeyla ignored her and raised the key above her head, "Open gate of the Dark Angel! Alysído!"

 **Akaine POV**

She was having fun. A lot of fun. Loads of fun. This Natsu guy was fun, she kept jumping out at the last second, making him more and more aggravated.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

"Fire Dragon's Crushing Fang!"

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

"Fire Dragon's Claw!"

"Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!"

Akaine just whistled a tune carelessly and hopped out of the way after each attack. She could hear the announcers commenting on her.

"It seems that Akaine is teasing Natsu to keep on attacking her."

"Not a wise choice, when Natsu is mad, he becomes extremely powerful. I believe that Vipers Fang is making a grave mistake."

Akaine finally gave up on dodging and stopped to face Natsu, "Soooooo, wattup? How's your day been?" she asked cheerfully.

Natsu growled at her and didn't answer, "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Akaine frowned at him and waggled her finger to scold him, "You know, I was taught to reply "Good, how about you?" instead of attacking the person who asked. You need to be punished."

Akaine took a few steps back then got a running start. When she was about to crash into Natsu, she jumped straight up into the air.

The light around the area intensified and shone brighter. Akaine cupped her hands like she was holding a ball and gathered all the light there.

"Holy Rays of the Sun God!"

Akaine opened her hands and aimed down at Natsu, pushing him down into the ground.

A dust cloud blew up and covered where Natsu was. Akaine landed onto the sandy floor and looked around, trying to listen for any sounds, but the cheering of the crowd mixed in and she couldn't hear anything.

 _Damn them, they're messing me up._

She brought her fist up, preparing to get rid of the dust cloud. When she was about to bring her hand down, someone caught her wrist and flipped her onto back. The breath was knocked out of her. Rubbing the dust out of her eyes, she could see red glowing eyes, staring down at her.

A fiery fist was brought down at her face and Akaine crossed her arms in front of her face to protect herself. The flames diminished as they touched her skin, but the impact of the blow still hurt.

Akaine grit her teeth and mustered her strength. She back flipped and landed on her feet, "I guess I have to take you more seriously then." She said to Natsu.

"Never underestimate Fairy Tail." Natsu yelled at her.

Akaine lifted her arms to reveal golden, flickering wings, "Fine, suit yourself."

She raced forward. Swinging her fist at Natsu, she aimed for the stomach with her other hand. Natsu ducked and Akaine's arm missed his head. He had also shifted slightly to the right, so her fist that was aiming for the stomach also missed.

"Is that all?" Natsu challenged.

Akaine smiled, "Yup, and you should be feeling in about 3…,2…,1…"

Natsu looked around and started to feel a burning sensation on his head and the side of his body. Looking down, he saw that his shirt was on fire. He slapped it and tried to eat it, but as soon as his mouth came in contact with the flame, it burned his mouth.

Akaine pointed to his head, "You missed a spot."

Natsu swatted at his head, trying to put the fire out.

"Why the hell can't I eat this?" he protested with an edge of panic in his voice.

Akaine smirked at him, "These flames are straight from the heavens, gifted to me by the gods. You are not important or significant enough to eat these flames. You, after all, are only a dragon slayer. Dragons compared to gods, well, you can't even make a comparison."

Natsu ran around, frantically slapping his head.

Akaine shook her head in disappointment. From what she had heard, this Natsu was supposed to be really powerful.

Akaine looked around and saw Zeyla holding up a Platinum Key.

 _Oh goody, it's this one. This show is going to get interesting._

 **Zeyla's POV**

"Open gate of the Dark Angel! Alysído!"

A black seal slowly started to form in sky, growing larger and larger. An enormous ball of shadow slowly descended from the seal and made its way to Zeyla's side.

The ball of shadow unraveled itself and took form of a human.

"Take down the holy angel." Zeyla commanded.

The shadow unfurled torn and shredded wings and speed toward Lucy. Holding her hands in front of her and creating a golden shield, Lucy prayed that she wouldn't be hurt to bad. She kept waiting for the impact, but it never came. Lucy opened her eyes and wildly looked around.

Where was the Dark Angel?

"Rule number one," Zeyla called out, "Never close your eyes in a battle. You need to sense your opponents' moves and direction. You will miss where they are, like now."

Lucy then felt a cold evil sense move up from her back. In terror, she turned to see the angel facing her.

It had no face, or rather it was just composed of fear and shadows, she could not see it. The wings were made of sharp bones and a long, frayed scarf wrapped around its neck.

" _Remember this fear. Do not forget it."_ A voice whispered in her ear.

Images flashed across her eyes. Her first fight. The dragons invading the town. The fight against Angel. The feeling of being alone. All the times when her father ignored her. The feeling when her father died. All the fear she had ever felt came rushing back to her.

Lucy crumpled onto the ground, unable to take it.

"LUCY!" a voice screamed from across the field. It was Natsu.

"Don't you forget too." The hollow, eerie voice murmured.

The angel shifted with the shadows and made its way to Natsu. He tried to fend it off by sending roars of fire at it but it kept advancing not fazed by the magic.

"Get away from me!" Natsu shrieked. The angel stopped in front of him.

 _"_ _Remember me once more."_

Natsu stiffened as his memories came crashing to him.

 _Igneel was gone forever_

 _His friends were dying in front of his eyes._

 _MOON SHARDS!_

 _Zeyla, wait I didn't mean it. I was just angry, I didn't mean it. Zeyla please wait_.

 _Who are you? You can't be Zeyla!_

 _It seems tonight my claws are going to get dirty on your blood, Natsu._

 _Zeyla is dead_.

 _Zeyla is dead_.

 _Zeyla is dead_.

The fear consumed him, bit by bit, and the last thing he saw was Zeyla's face glaring down at him.


	20. Remember

**Natsu's POV**

He seemed to be floating out in nowhere. Blackness was all around him, no light within his grasp. He kept on sinking farther and farther, or up, he didn't know. There was no up, down or sideways. It was like he was in space.

His fingers reached out, hoping to grab onto something, something so he knew he wasn't alone. Wandering around, his hope diminished into near nothing. He was truly alone.

"You are not alone Natsu." A voice floated from behind him.

Whipping around to find the owner of the voice, his eyes widened. Zeyla.

Zeyla walked forward, her gaze never wavering. It was not friendly, yet it wasn't hostile either. She was neutral, seemingly only wanting to talk. To talk. Natsu had wanted to do that for so long. To talk to his long lost friend, to beg for forgiveness.

"Zeyla!" he started off but his voice faltered when Zeyla raised a hand to silence him. Her gaze turned menacing and angry.

"You fool. I don't want to hear your excuses. Blah blah blah. That's in the past, sort of. I am not forgiving you at all. After all, you were the result of this."

She tugged down the collar of her blazer to reveal a intricate black mark on her collarbone.

"I think this happened, oh, about eight years ago. You know that incident on Tenrou Island." She said nonchalantly.

Natsu stifled a gasp that was about to break through, "You were on the island? But…"

"But what?" Zeyla retorted, "We were caught up in the mess. Or should I say, we were the cause of the mess. I was hoping when, ah, the event was over, I could return home with a few treasures and a death, but none the less, I didn't."

"A death?" Natsu whispered, horrified at what he was hearing.

Zeyla smirked at him, flipping her shiny, long silver hair over her shoulder, "Zeref. I assume you know this name? Gray should too, considering that one of his demons killed his mother, father, and village."

"Zeref?" Natsu was a loss for words.

"Long story short," Zeyla started, "I was looking for a few treasures that Fairy Tail happens to posses. Two of them in fact. I know that Fairy Tail's motto is family, so I don't think that you would want your _family_ any harm. Bring your necklace to me at midnight tonight and Fairy Tail will be spared."

Natsu snapped out of his trance, "What? Why do you want the necklace that you gave me? That makes no sense!"

Zeyla continued talking, ignoring every word that Natsu spoke, "Also bring your fellow dragon slayer friend. Wendy? Is that her name? You two come alone. Bring anyone else, or try to fight against me, your guild will be crushed."

Natsu's fist trembled in rage. How dare she threaten the all mighty Fairy Tail? There was no way that he was going to betray his family.

Before he was going to object Zeyla spoke up, "Do what I say and no harm will come your way. It is only a necklace after all, right? Parting with it shouldn't be a problem."

Natsu glared at her. Why did she want this necklace? His hands tightly clutched it. This was something that gave him power to believe in his family and friends, no matter how bad the situation was. It gave him power.

"Where do we meet?" he asked slowly.

"Meet me in the GMG stadium tonight, make any other move and Fairy Tail will suffer. I'll see you later,…Natsu." Zeyla waved a hand and disappeared.

Natsu was still in the black, in his fear, wanting to get back. He saw a gold light and a hand reached in.

"Natsu! Wake up! Are you okay?"

The sweet voice woke him up. Lucy's voice had found him. He kicked his feet like he was swimming, reaching out desperately to grab onto a friendly hand.

"Lucy!" he called out, longing to see the face of one he loved. His eyes slowly flickered opened to see nearly the entire guild of Fairy Tail peering down him anxiously.

"Are you okay?"

"We thought you were a goner!"

"You weren't waking up even though there were no wounds…"

 _No showing wounds. Only the wounds of my past. Zeyla, how did you turn into this? How am I supposed to turn on my friend like that, especially Wendy?"_

He snapped out of his thoughts and heaved himself out of the bed. Turning to Lucy, he asked, "When, um, you got knocked out by that spirit, did you someone talk to you?"

Lucy tilted her head in confusion, "No, I just felt like,… I felt like all the fear that ever existed just came to me. I couldn't move at all. From what I saw on replay, once we were down, the other girl and Iberia attacked me head on. That why," she said motioning to the bandages on her body, "I have these on. But for some reason, they didn't attack you."

Natsu bowed his head in thought.

 _She still needs me to bring myself and Wendy to the stadium._

"Hey guys," he started, "Um, I feel better now. Bye now!" Natsu yelped. He rushed out of the room, stumbling at the doorway.

 _How the hell am I going to tell Wendy? Damn it all._

He walked through the hallways, hoping that an idea would spark.

"OW!" a high pitched voice rang through his ear. He jumped back in surprise and looked down. A girl with long blue hair was at his feet.

"Ay! Natsu, I'm so sorry. Please I wasn't watching and I-"

Natsu held out and helped her up. Wendy mumbled a quick thanks.

"Wendy," he started not sure how he was going to say this, "I need you to go to the GMG stadium at midnight. Please. I can't explain now. Just trust me."

Wendy's face turned crimson red at the thought of that? What was on Natsu's mind? Seeing Wendy's face Natsu shook his hands, "No, that's what I meant!"

He ran his fingers through his hair in stress, "Please Wendy. I'll tell you once we get there okay?"

Wendy was shocked but slowly nodded. What was he going to tell her.

 **Zeyla's POV**

Zeyla crossed her legs as she looked at the flickering flames that were burning the wood into black ash. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes, remembering Tenrou Island.

 **Flashback**

 _"Hurry up Hikumu!" Zeyla yelled over her shoulder. The two blindly ran through the forest on the island. The guild of Fairy Tail was in the position she had hoped for._

 _She had came to Tenrou island for a few sole reasons. One: to fulfill her promise to Zeref and two: to get the wind and flame necklace. With those gems, she would be a third of the way to getting the gems._

 _The gems were the key to opening the gate. Very much like the Eclipse, the Gate of Ultimate Power needed tremendous power in order to activate._

 _They would need six gems. Each representing the earth: fire, water, earth, and air. In order to represent the life on it, the gate also required light and dark, the very things that dwell in the hearts of all._

 _While running at her top speed, both Hikumu and Zeyla spread out their wings and shot up into the blue sky. They held out their hands and pressed them against one another's._

 _To call Acnologia would be difficult. This was her one last chance to gain the gems. She had already hired Master Hades to work for her in hopes that he would destroy Fairy Tail, but in the end, he had failed, beaten up by that damned Natsu._

 _In the end, he somehow had to always ruin her goals and dreams. Always, as if he wouldn't let her have her happy ending._

 _"Where is the rest of the gang?" she yelled over the wind._

 _"They're near the camp, waiting for orders, you know in case something goes wrong. I already told Hikari and Neo to leave if something goes wrong. They are smart enough to carry on the mission."_

 _"You ready?" Zeyla mouthed. Hikumu nodded and began to channel his energy out. The day became night as the clouds gathered around. The loud chattering from the Fairy Tail base quickly diminished. A loud roar could be heard as so the flapping up leather wings._

 _Acnologia was here._

 _The dragon raced over through the sky and Hikumu and Zeyla folded their wings and dropped down to the ground. They quickly ran through the thick of the trees, their feet skimming the ground._

 _When they had reached camp, they could see a battle going on with every mage giving their all. One by one, they were knocked down until none stood._

 _Hikumu took a step forward ready to collect the treasures but Zeyla grabbed the back of his cloak._

 _"Wait a second." She hissed._

 _On trembling knees, the members of Fairy Tail slowly stood up._

 _"This is Fairy Tail, we aren't going to let something like you defeat us!"_

 _Zeyla growled under her breath. That dumb ass Natsu wasn't helping at all. In astonishment, she watched as the grouped together and linked hands._

 _"You're kidding me. They're going to that spell?" Zeyla murmured in wonder, "This isn't going to be good. At all."_

 _"Should we warn the others to leave?" Hikumu whispered in her ear._

 _Zeyla shook her head, "There isn't enough time. Neo is probably out of the island already and so is Hikari, but the rest of us, we can't make it out of time and there is no way I'm leaving you guys behind."_

 _Hikumu started to protest but quieted under Zeyla's glare._

 _"Like Natsu said, we did underestimate Fairy Tail. This is one of the reasons that they are undefeatable, they never give up. However, sometimes not knowing when to give up is foolish. We will come back in a few years. We already have our reputation in stone and there is no need to panic. Our efforts will not be in waste."_

 _Hikumu opened his mouth then closed it on second thought._

 _Zeyla tugged on her blazer, "Well this may hurt a bit to me considering that I've been infected by a demon and a dragon. This Fairy Tail spell is going to leave a mark."_

 _A golden light shone down from the heavens and the entire island shone as the island was shrouded in Fairy Tail's love._

 _Hikari and Neo stood at the docks, each only ten or eleven. A scream could be heard as a large explosion could be seen at sea._

 _"Zeyla's' predictions were right." The boy with white hair said coolly, "With that spell in place, the connection to Edolas is now stronger than ever. We should be able to make it through the portal sometime they return from the island."_

 _Hikari nodded, "We have some work to finish now. We don't want to let Demons Hour down, do we?"_

 _The two walked down the cobblestone streets, far away from the disappeared guild, Fairy Tail._

Flashback end.

Zeyla looked up at the steel clock that was hung above the fireplace.

 _11:25_

She stood up and shook the soreness from her limbs, then walked out the room. Her guild was already gathered there.

"Listen up. We are there for the gems. No harming them unless they resist. Understood?"

Demons Hour nodded and filed into a line.

"Neo, care to send us to the stadium?"

They had some treasure to hunt.


	21. Wrath of the Devil

The moon glowed white against the dark sky. Zeyla was in the middle of the stadium waiting. Her hair was back to silver and her eyes gleamed purple.

The rest of Demons Hour was hidden from sight away from the center, watching for any signs of resistance.

A girl then stepped in with dark blue hair, quickly followed up by Natsu. They had arrived.

"Hello Natsu. Long time no see, well at least in person, you know what I mean?" Zeyla waved her hand in welcoming.

The girl with blue hair stopped walking and turned to Natsu in surprise, "Wha-what's going on? You brought me here so I could be handed over to her?"

Zeyla smiled. How typical of Natsu not to tell anyone anything, "Oh Wendy darling, he didn't tell you?" she smirked in satisfaction when Wendy shook her head, "He brought you here so you can give me your necklace."

Wendy took a small step backwards and turned in Natsu, "But!"

Natsu kept a firm hand on Wendy's shoulder, "I thought this over. We are not going to give you our necklaces. They mean a lot to us and if you want it, well that means something is extremely important about them, I won't let you get your hands on them."

Zeyla raised her eyebrows in surprise, "Oh?"

Natsu raised a flaming fist, "Which is the reason why I brought my family and friends to fight alongside with me, to bring you down."

From the shadows stepped out Fairy Tail.

Zeyla clutched her heart, "Oh dear," she said sarcastically, "This really scares me. Humph Natsu, I though you would at least give me time to explain before you pin me down as someone to pick a fight with."

Natsu growled, "You threatened to hurt my family. That is enough alone."

Zeyla waved her hand, "Yeah, yeah whatever. Natsu, honey, you have just made my job easier, not harder. Now I won't have to track every single person down because you didn't listen to my instructions. Either way the outcome is the same, I get those necklaces."

Gray cracked his knuckles, "Oh really? Bring it on."

Zeyla closed her eyes at their foolishness, "Demons Hour, it is now the time."

Immediately, the back row of people slumped down onto the ground with a loud thud. A girl with green hair stood behind them with an evil smile that didn't suit her face. Plants had sprouted from the ground and released a red dust.

Sleeping powder.

One by one, all the members of Fairy Tail was on the ground sleeping except for Natsu, Erza, Lucy, Gray, Wendy, and a handful of other people who were participating in the GMG.

Zeyla held out her hand, "One last chance," she warned, "Or all these people will be sent to hell, along with your master."

Natsu clutched his precious necklace as it started to glow brighter and brighter, " NEVER! I WILL NEVER GIVE UP ON MY FRIENDS."

Zeyla kept her emotionless mask on and shrugged, "Suit yourself."

A black light glowed around her. The shadows seemed to pull themselves from the ground and surrounded Zeyla, "Feel the wrath of death." She yelled out.

When the light had diminished, Zeyla was transformed and reequipped.

Her black dress was gone and replaces with a long sleeved purple dress that reached mid-thigh. A deep purple cape flowed down to her feet, rustling in the night wind. Her forehead was shielded with an obsidian helmet as so was her chest, forearms, waist, and hip. Black boots reached her knees and emitted pure fear and death.

What most stood out was her weapon. Held in her hand was a bronze scythe. The head was placed on a carefully crafted black metal. Zeyla spun it around in her hands.

"I could go all night on how this weapon was crafted but alas we do not have the time. I'll say the shortened version. This armor and weapon came straight from the devil himself. I suppose that's where we got our second origin too."

"Wait we?" Erza asked in confusion.

Zeyla cackled. "Oops, almost forgot. Please give a warm welcome to the rest of my new family."

Raising up from the shadows that had concealed them so well, Demons Hour stood up and teleported over to Zeyla's side.

Zeyla spread out her hands to showcase, "I'm sure you've heard of us. Demons Hour."

The remaining people stiffened at the name. Demons Hour was one of the most feared people. Rumor had it that the master was extremely powerful and ruthless, but about seven to eight years ago, they guild had gone quiet. No one heard from them again.

"Where is your leader?" Master spoke up, "We can negotiate."

Zeyla coldly smiled at him, "You are speaking to her."

The guild doubled back. Most had thought the Master of Demons Hour was a man. Seeing that it was a girl and none the less a girl who had once been in Fairy Tail, it was quite a shock.

Master started to stutter but Zeyla cut him off, "I have already set out my deal. Take it or you die. There is no other offer."

Natsu charged in without thinking, "Then we will die!"

Zeyla didn't move as Natsu got closer and closer to her. His fists were drawn back, blazing with the flame of his fury.

Zeyla heaved up her scythe and made a quick movement. All they saw was that Natsu had collapsed and Zeyla was on the other side of the stadium with her blade dripping in blood.

She folded her black wings and turned around glaring at them.

Lucy had rushed over to Natsu, worried.

"Natsu, are you alright? NATSU!" her voice had changed into horror as her hand cupped Natsu's blood. His black blood.

Lucy spun around to face Zeyla, "You monster! What the hell did you do to Natsu?"

Zeyla threw her head back in laughter, "You said it yourself. He is now infected with the touch of hell. The devil to be exact. I suggest none of you make the same movements and get killed."

She raised one hand and the snapping of the chain could be heard. The glowing necklace on Natsu's neck floated up and started to make its way to Zeyla.

"No." a limp hand rose from the body and grabbed the necklace. Zeyla glared at him.

"Well you are one hard person to kill." She snarled at him, "Demon Hour, activate second origin."

Black light erupted from each body and black wings unfurled from each member of Demons Hour.

"Feel the power of the Devil." Zeyla growled, "You have settled this fate on yourself."

She raised her scythe above her head and slammed it onto Natsu leg.

His body went limp and Zeyla snatched the gem out of his grasp.

"ATTACK!"

Demon Hour wasted no time. Mercy was not on their minds. Zeyla flew through the crowd, slashing her scythe, spilling black blood where ever her blade touched flesh. Her face finally met Erza's.

"I remember you." Erza growled, "You were the one Natsu always hung out with."

"Very precise Titania," Zeyla shot back, "Give me a fight would ya?"

But Erza stood no chance. None of her armor would do any good to the touch of the devil. Finally beaten down with her swords shattered, Erza was bruised and bloodied.

"See you later."

The last thing Erza saw was her blood on Zeyla's scythe.

Around her, the battle had stopped raging. All that was left was Wendy. The girl slowly backed up, terrified at her fate.

"Give it to us and you will be spared along with the guild. You love your family right?"

Wendy nodded wordlessly.

"Then give your wind necklace to us." Zeyla demanded her patience wearing thin. Wendy's hand crept up to her own neck and unclasped the chain. She tossed ti Zeyla who promptly caught it.

Zeyla examined it and seemingly satisfied closed her hand around the treasure and waved her hand over the stadium. One by one, the people faded away.

"What are you doing?" Wendy shrieked.

"Calm down. I'm sending them back and erasing their memories. You too."

Soon, all that was left was Natsu lying on the bloodied battlefield. Zeyla waved her hand at Demons Hour dismissing them. Zeyla stood over Natsu, "I know you're still away and living."

Natsu opened one eye and threw his fist at Zeyla's face.

Quickly, Zeyla dodged it and stabbed Natsu in the other leg, "I'm here to talk. Shut it unless you want to die"

"Where should I start? You have ruined every part of my life starting from that day at the festival. But I have to thank you for that. You awakened a new power and determination inside me. Not to mention you just gave me this."

She held up the pendent that once was part of his necklace, "I'm not going to remove your memories." She said suddenly.

"Why?" he croaked out.

"So you'll remember the fear and pain that I once had felt, at that festival, when I had met Zeref to the time where you trapped me on Tenrou Island. You left me infected with Fairy Tail's magic. It branded me."

Natsu grunted but didn't look at her.

Zeyla's voice changed, "Look at me in the eye."

Natsu rolled his head over and glared at her.

"You will never feel happiness ever again. For the rest of your life, you'll feel the wrath of the devil."

Her hand curled over the scythe and brought it down on his head.

Natsu's head exploded in pain. Blackness caved into his mind and a whisper floated into his ear.

"Hello Natsu, I've been wanting to meet you."


	22. Chained Soul

Trudging through the streets, Zeyla stopped by the hill where she had bumped into Sting.

"Again?"

Zeyla mentally groaned. She plastered on a smile and turned to the boy behind her.

"What brings you here?" she asked through seethed teeth.

Sting raised a brow, "I should be asking that question. I come here every night." He paused for a second and sniffed the air around him.

"Is that blood I smell?"

Inwardly cursing, Zeyla tried to wipe the splattered blood off her face and skin. Her hand was caught by the wrist and worried eyes peered into hers.

"Why is there blood on you?" Sting asked with a concerned voice.

Zeyla attempted to wriggle out of his grip but it was like to shake off iron, "I'm fine. It's nothing." She said shakily. If anyone found out what she had been doing that night, they would have the entire kingdom on their behinds.

Sting's grip tightened on her.

"You are not okay! Look at you, you're bleeding on your head and arm. You're practically gushing your life out! What happened?" he demanded.

 _Not my life, others._

She tensed up when Sting's hand crept up to her face and gently wiped off blood that was slowly trickling down her cheek. So she had been cut by Erza after all. Not that bad, that Titania.

She roughly shoved his hand away.

"I'm fine. Honest. There's no need to fawn over this. And by the way shouldn't you be back at your dorms? They're going to be locked up soon." She said trying to change the subject.

Sting ignored her comment and grabbed her wrist once more, "You need to get cleaned up. I'm bringing you back to Sabertooth's guild. I have an extra key."

"Wait what!?" she exclaimed.

Sting heaved her onto his back and started heading to the dorms.

"Wait I never agreed to this. I can go to my own dorms!" Zeyla whispered shouted, not wanting to attract a lot of attention.

"You said it yourself that the dorms are automatically locked at one. I have the key to the door so we should be fine."

"But-"

"But no."

Zeyla slumped down on his back in defeat. Her arms wrapped around his warm neck and she dropped her head in exhaustion in the crook of his neck. Her breathing slowed down as she began to relax.

Sting's face couldn't be seen by Zeyla, but his face was dusted with a shade of pink. He could feel her heartbeat thumping though his back and her gentle breathing on the back of his neck. It was a slow rhythm that synced with his. His face turned a bit more red as her face shifted a bit.

God this trip would be long.

* * *

Sting unlocked the doors of the dorm and walked up the stairs. He gently set her on the bed and shook her. His hand quickly recoiled when he found his hand was wet. Bring his hand to his face he gasped in horror.

Black.

Black blood.

"Iberia! Wake up!" his voice was now more frantic, "Iberia, wake up! Please, are you okay?"

Zeyla moaned in protest and her eyes fluttered open.

"What do you want?" she mumbled sleepily.

Sting waved his bloody hand in her face, "Why are you bleeding BLACK blood. From what I know, blood is red, not black! What happened to you?"

Zeyla bit back a curse. Damn him. She should have fled when she had a chance. Now she was going to have to think of something. She had to admit, running away from him would be tough. And besides, she had slept soundly on his back.

"Ummmmm…" she said starting.

"Um what?"Sting asked.

 _What the hell am I going to say? I almost killed everyone in Fairy Tail and tainted them with the devil? Yup that's totally going to work. This blood isn't even mine. The only blood that's mine is from the cut on the cheek that Erza gave me. The rest is from Fairy Tail._

Zeyla grinned sheepishly, "Well you see, I can't really remember. That's too bad. I guess I better shower all of this off now? Where's the bathroom? Oh look it's over there! See ya!"

She dashed off before Sting could react and slammed the bathroom door behind her. Sting scratched his head.

How could she move if she was spilling that much blood out of her body?

"Sting-kun? What just sat on me?"

Sting looked down on the bed to see that Lector was squashed into the bed.

"Sorry Lector. Iberia just ummm was…"

Lector smirked at him, thoughts running through his head.

 **Zeyla's POV**

Zeyla walked into the bathroom and locked the door behind her. How was she going to get out without breaking anything or making a lot of sound?

She quickly swiped her hand over her body and the blood disappeared. Going over to the sink, she splashed water over her head to make it look like she took a shower.

Skimming her hands over the wall of the bathroom, Zeyla checked for any weak spots in the wall to see if she could make a hole.

 _Knock Knock._

She silently cursed at her luck. "What is it?" she called out.

"I have some extra clothes. They're Yukino's but they should fit…" Sting said through the door.

"Just leave it outside the door." She called back.

She heard a thud as the clothes hit the ground. She crept to the door and opened at a creek. Peeping her hand out of the door, she snatched up the clothes and quickly changed.

Opening the door, she saw Lector and Sting on the bed laughing. She made her way over and sat on the edge. She stiffened as Sting's hand brushed over her back. His hand firmly pressed onto her skin and began to move around.

Zeyla grabbed his wrist, her face red. "What are you doing?" she snapped.

Sting looked surprised, "I was just looking for any wounds. You were bleeding heavily so I thought you had to have some cuts. Lector even brought bandages."

He motioned to Lector who was tangled up in them.

"O-o-oh. I'm fine. I have no serious wounds. I'm fine." She said shakily, "I have to go back now. Thanks for your time and hospitality."

She got up and was about to walk away when Sting caught her wrist, "You are going nowhere. You already got hurt tonight. If you go out again, you may get attacked. Besides, all the dorm doors are locked, without a key you can't get in."

Zeyla rolled her eyes. To get into their dorms, all you needed was the mark of Vipers Fang.

"Fine." She grumbled, "Where am I going to sleep?"

Sting scratched the back of his neck, "Well, all the rooms are taken and everyone else is asleep. I guess you can sleep in my bed."

Zeyla jumped back, "WHAT! I AM NOT SLEEPING WITH YOU!"

Sting rolled his eyes, "No, I don't mean it like that. The bed is big enough where you can sleep on one side and roll around all you want and you won't be even able to get near me."

Zeyla huffed, "Fine, but lay one hand on me and you're dead."

She flipped the covers over and crawled onto one side. Sting slid in on the other side and flicked the lights.

"Night Iberia." He said softly. He was answered with soft breathing.

 _Sleeping already? Huh, cute._

 **Natsu's POV**

"Hello Natsu, I've been wanting to meet you."

The voice reached Natsu's ears and he cringed at the sound. It held fear and power. It pulled him in, making him remember every sin he ever committed, every bad day he had, every tear he had caused.

"Natsu Dragneel. Such a familiar memory." The voice mused.

"Show yourself!" Natsu yelled.

The voice coldly laughed, "How rude of me. I didn't even introduce myself." From the shadows stepped out a man.

He had purple tinted hair that fell into his red eyes. A black over coat trimmed in gold covered the white ruffles underneath. Black tuxedo pants matched his top and his gleaming black shoes squeaked against the floor as he made his way over to Natsu.

"I have heard much about you Dragneel from a client of mine." The man mused.

"Who are you?" Natsu growled.

The man smirked at him, "I have many name such as Satan or Evil, but perhaps you would recognize me if I said my name is the Devil?"

 **Zeyla's POV**

 ** _Dream/ flash back_**

 _She stood at the top of the mountain. At the very center was a gold gate. Pressing her hand on it, a rumble shook the mountain to the root. A stair case slowly rose from the ground as the mountain split into two._

 _Looking down, Zeyla could see that there was no end of the hole. Jumping down, she spread out her black wings and zoomed through the blackness. Lighting up her hand with white flames, she darted her eyes through the darkness, looking for the keys. The diamond keys._

 _"_ _You looking for this?" a voice above her asked._

 _Snapping her head up she saw a lean and skinny man floating with a pair of wings. Around his finger was a ring of diamond keys. Twirling them around, the man slowly descended so he could face her._

 _"_ _My my Zeyla. I haven't seen you in person before, have I?" the man said softly._

 _Zeyla said nothing just lunged out trying to grab the keys._

 _"_ _Now, now, don't be rude. I'm here for a bargain or trade." The man said, "You want these keys right?"_

 _"_ _I'm not going o do anything for you." Zeyla seethed._

 _The man chuckled, "Of course not. I just wanted to help you with you revenge. After all, that's what you wanted. You need more power."_

 _"_ _Revenge? How did you know about that?" Zeyla asked, getting angrier._

 _The man looked her directly in the eye, "I see all sins and evil for I am the Devil."_

 _Zeyla threw her head back in laughter and joy, "The Devil you say? Wow, this day is getting better and better. I always wanted to meet you. Legend said that you can grant chosen ones amazing power. Although it isn't close to the Ultimate Power."_

 _The Devil smirked at her, "So you've heard of me then? You know the deal?"_

 _Zeyla nodded, "You take my soul and then in return, you grant me power. But I don't like that. I like to keep control of my own body."_

 _The Devil smiled. This was one smart girl. Worthy enough to be called the Devil herself. "Of course. I always like a good play anyway. How about this. I grant you power but you have to promise me you'll take your revenge."_

 _Zeyla frowned, "But you still have to take my soul. The only way to give me your power is by taking my soul."_

 _The Devil nodded, "I'm still going to take it but," he pulled out a silver chest, "I'll keep it in here. No one can touch it nor harm it. Technically, I can't control it once it's in there."_

 _Zeyla stared at the chest weighing out the options. Take it or leave it? There was no loss on her part. It was a win win._

 _"_ _This soul is now yours Devil." She said._

 _A scream could be heard through the mountain. Hours later a girl with silver hair and purple eyes popped out of the mountain._

 _She stretched her body and looked around._

 _"_ _Having a soul in a chest feel good. I can't feel pain anymore. It's…refreshing." The girl then spread out her wings and flew off._

 _In the hand of the Devil was a silver chest. It thrashed around a bit but then stood still. Inside was a girl in a white dress, arms chained out and legs tied together with metal locks._

 _Inside this chest was a chained soul, never to be set free again._


	23. A Brief Meeting

A/N I double updated because I was inactive for over a week lol. Go back one chappie if you haven't read it yet. Enjoy!

Natsu had a mixture of feelings. Should he be scared? Angry?

The Devil took a step forward and waved his hand over the ground. Red furnished furniture appeared. The Devil sat down on a blood red couch and seemed to relax.

"Take a seat." He said, gesturing to the seat behind Natsu. Natsu did not sit down; he just stood there warily.

The Devil frowned and swiped his hand. The seat moved forward and shoved underneath Natsu, causing him to fall onto the seat.

The Devil smiled, now satisfied.

"Where should we start?" he said speaking to Natsu.

"Maybe why you're here?" Natsu said growling, "It isn't everyday that an immortal person comes to visit you."

The Devil waved his hand nonchalantly, "Oh no need. Yes! I remember now." He put a serious face on, "You are meddling with one of my client's life. A lot."

Natsu crossed his arms and leaned back, "I don't know anyone who came in contact with you. Besides no one in Fairy Tail would ever want to make any deal with you."

The Devil laughed at Natsu's words, "My, you are funny. Anyway, I'm not completely evil as many books portray me. I came to give you a warning." From thin air, a silver chest materialized.

He held it up to the dim lighting as if inspecting it. Turning it around, the Devil checked every detail.

"What is that?" Natsu asked, finally losing his patience.

Looking him in the eye he spoke, "A soul chest. You may need this if you want to survive and keep your life. Inside this," he said pointing the chest, "lies a soul taken by none the less, me. Later this person may, let's see, try to _kill or perhaps harm_ you."

With one hand, the Devil tossed the chest to Natsu. As it flew through the air, it shrunk in size until it was small enough to be a charm.

"Keep it on your chain. I'm sure it will be a good enough replacement for your lost necklace. Your life may be saved because of this."

He then pulled out a pocket watch and peeked at the time.

"Oh look at the time! I have to go. My next client is waiting for me. Good-bye now Natsu. I hope we can meet again in the future…if you have one."

With a mocking salute, the Devil turned into red mist and was blown away. Natsu lunged forward, trying to grab onto the mist.

"Wait? How do you know I'm going to die? Who's coming after me? I still don't understand what this chest is! And how did you know that I had a necklace?"

He was only answered with the amused laughter of the Devil.

 **Sting's POV**

At the break of dawn, Sting woke up just like every day. One problem, he couldn't get up. Someone was restraining him by the waist and he couldn't detach himself.

Opening his eyes, he saw that Iberia's arms were tightly wrapped around him as she was sleeping peacefully. He was surprised.

Her expression was something he had never seen before. Instead of the usual "I-don't-want-to-tell-you-something-so-I'm-going-to-lie-to-you" face, "Shut-up-or-I'm-going-to-kill-you" face or the "I-really-hate-you-no-explanation-needed" face; she had on a gentle angelic face. It was peaceful and relaxed like all the stress had been torn away from her. It was quite a change considering every time he saw her, her forehead had crease lines due to the glaring or frowning directed to him.

He tried prying himself away with no luck. Damn, this girl was strong. Every time he'd pull her arm away from his body, it would tense and grip even stronger. He finally gave up and went to the last resort.

"WAKE UP!"

Iberia shot up in the air, and her eyes opened wide. Re-equipping, she pulled out a blue sword and pointed at Sting's neck. Sting held up his hands in surrender, "Sorry, it was the only way for you to get off me."

He had to hold back laughter when he saw the familiar frown lines go back on her face.

"You…IDIOT! WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?" She screeched in his face.

Sting raised a brow, "Sorry ma'am. You were on me, not the other way around."

Zeyla snarled at him and shoved the covers off of them. She stretched out a bit then turned to the door, the forced a smile on her face.

"Thanks for the night stay, but I have to go back now."

She slammed the door behind her and walked to Yukino's door. She was greeted by a bleary eyed girl, "Morning…" Yukino mumbled.

"Hey girl. I'll return the clothes later." Zeyla said.

Yukino slowly nodded and quietly closed the door.

Zeyla made her way down to the hall where a few early risers were chatting. She stormed through and walked out the doors but not before picking up the whispers.

"I hear that Vipers Fang is totally dominating."

"Yeah, not to mention that their girls are HOT!"

"And super powerful. I still remember the fight that girl took with Sting. Totally crushed him!"

"Her name is Iberia right? I heard that she came from the South Pole, which is why her skills with ice are so powerful."

Zeyla had to laugh at the last comment. All the rumors were going wild now.

She ran through the streets and stopped at her guild. Pressing her mark against the door, she entered the room. Walking in her room, she changed into her normal dress and made her way to Hikumu's room.

"Hello?" she softly asked.

BAM!

She had to jump back to avoid getting hit by the door.

"WHY THE HELL WERE YOU IN SABERTOOTH DORM LAST NIGHT?"

Zeyla cringed at his loud voice. Oops. They probably figured out where she was from the tracker map that Neo had conveniently made.

She regained her composure and glared down at him, "I was out relaxing when Sting found me. He thought I was bleeding and brought me back. Normal dorms are locked near one so he assumed that I was locked out and offered a night stay. Geez, it's not like I'm going to get killed or anything."

Hikumu took a deep breath and started speaking, "Anyway, Juden found the location of the gem."

Zeyla's eyes widened, "Where?" she asked.

Hikumu winced a bit, "A tiny problem getting this one. It's on the princess."

 **Natsu's POV**

His eyes flew open and rubbed his eyes . Looking around, he saw that he was back in the Fairy Tail dorm. Grabbing his necklace like he did every morning, he was disappointed to find only a chain.

 _So it wasn't a dream._

His hand clenched at the thought of Zeyla. A friend now a monster. His fist closed on something cool.

In shock he lifted his hand to his face and opened his hand up. In the center of his palm was a tiny silver chest.

It radiated some kind of unknown power. He could somehow feel whatever was inside.

 _Inside here lies a soul._

He could feel the screams of despair like the soul was screaming out. Every second that the silver touched his skin, a feeling of dread and fear spread further throughout his body.

It then disappeared out of his hand and he then felt a weight on his neck. Pulling the chain, he saw that the chest was now attached on the necklace.

Trying to tug it off, the chain only got tighter and tighter around his neck as if it didn't want to leave him.

 _Your life may be saved because of this._

The Devil's words came back ringing in his ears. Letting loose of the chain, he got up and pulled his scarf a bit tighter around his neck. For some reason, he felt an attachment to the necklace and could not get rid of it even if he could. It felt like if he got rid of it, he would be letting go of someone he loved.

* * *

Juden crept through the stone castle along with Moyasu and Arashu.

"In position now," he whispered.

Zeyla's voice responded in his ear, "Good, where is the princess now?"

"In her room. Five other people are with her." He responded. The line went quiet for a few moments.

"Take on your magic disguise and draw them out. We can't take them head on. _Yet._ "

Juden then shut off the connection and motioned for Moyasu and Arashu to follow him. As they rounded the corner a deep voice greeted them.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?"


	24. Special Code Geass Crossover

A/N I've been reading Code Geass again lol. Enjoy the crossover special in honor of passing the 2,000 read mark

Today was a perfect day. Almost. The sun was shining brightly against the cloud dotted sky. The wind gently rustled the long stemmed flowers creating a one of a kind music. The sky was painted a gentle blue that could soothe any mind. With the current flowing in her hair, Zeyla sat down on the ground.

Or rather at the bottom of a river.

To those who can breathe underwater, being in the water was simply magical. The water was crystal clear and with the sun streaming through the water; it created an illusion that you were sitting in diamond. Tiny fish would dart throughout the water brushing past her skin and the plant at the bottom of the water gently swayed to the rhythm of the river. The water cooled Zeyla's skin as she lay on the muddy river bottom, simply relaxing as she hadn't done in a long time.

Running her fingers through her hair, her mind wandered to the events just happened. She had just been trapped in Tenrou Island for seven years. Coming back had sort of been a shocker. First, Neo and Hikari looked nothing like they did seven years ago. Now all grown up and older than her, they looked much more mature and had a silent, solemn attitude on them.

It only took a day or so to recap all the information that the two had gathered while they were gone. Being quite resourceful, the pair had somehow found the location of the Gate.

However, after being cooped up sleeping for seven years, Zeyla wanted to get out and relax for awhile. And she was until she was rudely interrupted by some loud shouting and thumps that made the ground violently vibrate.

Zeyla was annoyed. She was in the middle of wilderness. There were supposed to be no humans around for twenty to fifty miles and the only way to get here was by foot or by flying.

She closed her eyes blocking out all of the sound, trying to calm herself down.

 _The first step to be powerful is to be calm and in sync with your body._

Zeref. Her first and only teacher had taught her this. This helped her many times. Emotions could hinder you and cloud your true motives. If you had a clear mind, you would be unstoppable

BOOM

Unable to take the shaking, Zeyla shot out of the water to face an entire army. However, instead of an army, there were a lot robots, all made of metal.

She wrinkled her face in disgust. Who would want to advance technology this far when they had magic? She took a step forward and the machine raised its arm.

"Halt." A voice boomed from the hunk of metal.

Thoughts zoomed through her mind. If they found out she was the leader of Demons Hour, it would be the end. No matter how much power she possessed, numbers would overwhelm her.

"Halt?" she said in a cold voice, "I think I remember you. I killed some of your friends the other day. Or perhaps the day before that?"

Narrowing her eyes, she slowly moved her hand behind her back and made a flicking motion. The water from the river burst out and slammed into the metal. The machine raised and crossed its hands in front of itself, and an energy shield appeared.

Zeyla grimaced at this response. These machines were obviously much more advanced than the ones she had taken out two days ago.

A cool voice floated out into the air, "May you look at me?"

Zeyla shifted her attention to the voice. A man with a helmet stood out in front. A black cloak whipped around him as the winds rushed around. Suddenly thesmall piece of the glass that shielded the persons face slid away to reveal a messed up eye.

The eye was glowing red and right below the pupil was a bird like symbol.

"I command you to die." A man's voice said behind the mask.

Zeyla stood there dumbfounded. Did that person really expect her to kill herself? Was he that foolish?

She started snickering, "I don't think so. I don't know who you are, but you don't go around randomly telling people to kill themselves," her expression then hardened, "And it's not every day when you tell the most powerful being existing to die."

Her fist made a crushing movement and the metal that made up the machines followed her gesture. In less than five seconds, the entire ground fleet was taken down.

Steel capsules ejected from the machines and flew into the air. There was only one person left along with the masked man.

"Show your face or I'll force it off." Zeyla threatened.

The man chuckled, "As expected. It seems I am not the only one who can perform miracles. I have a favor to ask or perhaps a request."

The man again slid the glass that hid his eyes and the cursed eye appeared once more, "Join the Black Knights and follow my every order."

Zeyla crossed her arms and glared at the man, "I seriously don't know what the hell you're thinking. Your eye thingy, is it supposed to make me a brainwashed person?"

Her dragon senses could hear him curse. She smirked at him and started to dive into his thoughts.

 _Why isn't my Geass working on her? Who is this girl? What are the options? I don't think we can run, there aren't any openings,_ _and her actions prove she has been in fights before. She could kill us before we could react. I doubt Kallen could fire at her right now and even if she could; she could dodge it. There is almost no way out._

"You know you could just politely tell me why you came here and tried to kill me. Then I might lend you a way out. After all running won't work because there aren't any openings and my actions prove I have been in fighting before. I could kill you before you could react and Kallen can't fire at me and if she could, I would dodge."Zeyla announced while examining her finger nails.

A smile of satisfaction crept onto her face as she sensed the shock on the mysterious man.

"How about we settle this over a game of chess and coffee?" she suggested, "The nearest café is about twenty miles away."

She could feel the man calculating every possibility as she stood there waiting.

"Or, you know, I could kill you." She finished.

The man then curtly nodded, "Very well, lead the way."

Zeyla jumped into the air and spread out her wings. She could hear a gasp from the man's companion which she assumed was Kallen. Did they never see wings on a wizard before? Yeesh, it was like they had never seen magic.

Beating her wings, she snuck a glance behind her. The machine was in the air and had these holographic or glass wings. Zeyla had to admit she was intrigued by these people. They had advanced technology that was completely useless on Earthland and could make machines that flew. Strange, but intriguing. That was the one and only reason she didn't sent them flying off to space.

Or at least an illusionary space. Blasting them into the real space would be too much work.

Diving down to the edge of a quiet town, she folded her wings as they disappeared with a shimmer. The flying machine landed next to her with a crash and she had to jump back in order to avoid getting smashed.

"Get out now," she barked at the, "And remove your mask."

The masked man walked out and placed one hand over his helmet. The women with pink-red hair quickly followed in protest.

"Master Zero! You cannot reveal your face. You-"

She was cut off as soon as Zero spoke, "It's fine Kallen. As I suspect now, these people have no idea about Zero, about the Black Rebellion, about the Black Knights, or anything about Britannia."

The mask hissed as it fell apart and dropped to the ground.

"My name is Lelouch Lamperouge. This is my …friend Kallen Kōzuki And yours?" he said sticking out his hand in greeting

Zeyla gave a quick scan of his body to his face.

 _Appears to be physically weak._

 _Intelligent look and the fact that that many people would follow him means he is a leader._

 _Which also means he is probably extremely smart._

 _The weird eye must be some kind of power._

 _Claims something about Britannia. Is that a kingdom? Never heard about it before._

Her eyes finally fell to his eyes. He had messy, ebony hair that fell into his purple eyes. Eyes just like hers.

The eyes held pain, death, guilt, and power. It held intelligence, the power to lie with no regrets, the power to deceive.

In short, those eyes reflected her.

She stuck her hand out and firmly shook his, "Nice to meet you. The name is Zeyla Amador."

* * *

The three people briskly walked into the café, ignoring the weird looks that others gave them.

A girl with red hair wearing a headband and fitted in magenta suit, a boy covering one of his eyes, wearing a long black magician cape and a girl with silver hair wearing a less poofy version of a black Victorian dress. Yup, your everyday sight.

Zeyla sat a table near a window and folded her hands. The time seemed to tick by slowly and she bored her eyes into the two foreigners, reading their thoughts and history.

"You're not from here or anywhere close, am I correct?" she spoke suddenly.

Even the professional cannot hide surprise well. The other girl widened her eyes and gaped opened her mouth. The boy however, only showed a tiny flinch of his shoulders and a twitch of his eye.

"No, I am sorry, we are from here. You are mistaken." Lelouch said coolly.

"Don't lie to me Lelouch. Or should I say _Lelouch vi-"_

She abruptly stopped speaking as she saw a pleading look in his eye.

A voice started to pound into her head.

 _Please do not reveal any of my past in front of her. Please. If you can read my thoughts, please understand that revealing any of my history will take a large toll on Japan, Britannia, and the entire world._

Zeyla narrowed her eyes at the boy. The same purple eyes stared back at her.

The corner of her mouth curled up a bit.

 _So he has a past to hide just like me._

"Excuse me, I just had something caught in my throat. I meant Lelouch or Zero. How did you get that name? I remember a few minutes back that is what Kallen called you. Master Zero eh?"

The panicked look in Lelouch eyes diminished quickly and was replaced by a thankful one.

Zeyla waved her hand to brush the situation aside and smiled, "Well about that chess game, why don't we start. And you can tell me all about this other world or dimension you come from. Tell me everything from this kingdom named Britannia, to the uprising, to your fake death that recently happened."

She had to suppress a smile as Kallen eyes held shock and bewilderment.

"I work miracles just like Zero." She said simply. Lightly tapping the table, a chessboard with its pieces in place slowly appeared onto the table.

"You don't mind being black, do you?" she asked. Lelouch shook his head and the match begun.

"Where should I start the story?" Lelouch asked out loud, fixating his eyes on the board. He already knew this wouldn't be an easy match. One look over at this Zeyla and he could already figure out this girl was an amazing strategist. He moved his knight out and waited for Zeyla to make her move.

Zeyla's hand hovered over her pawn. Shifting it two spaces forward she said, "I don't need to know about the rebellion or anything else. Tell me about Geass."

Lelouch's grip on his other knight tightened. There was nothing he could hide from this girl. Moving the knight alongside the other he cautiously spoke, "And what would you want to know about it?"

Zeyla rested her chin on her hand. "What is it? How do you obtain it? How powerful is it? And most of all: why it didn't work on me. You seemed surprised when your demand didn't reach my ears." Finishing her mini speech, she moved another pawn two spaces.

Lelouch looked down at the chessboard. Half his mind was on the game and the other was on the questions. What was she going to do with the knowledge of Geass? Giving dangerous knowledge to a stranger who could kill without it in the first place was terrifying enough.

He slid out one of his pawns on space forward and glanced up. Zeyla's eyes were digging straight into him. Averting his eyes away he began to speak, "Geass is a supernatural ability. It basically is power that responds to your wishes. It is activated when you look someone in the eye. My Geass is the ability to take someone's will away, or complete obedience. There are limitations such as using it only once on a person or the command must be issued verbally."

Zeyla shifted her hand over to her knight and moved it out, "I suppose that's why it didn't work on me. I have no soul. The soul is where willpower comes from. It is like a second brain, where our feelings come from. With no soul, you cannot control me for my will is not there. At least in my body."

Lelouch stiffened at the information. No soul? How was that possible? A soul is not even a real thing. How could they remove it?

Zeyla continues with her explanation, "If you haven't noticed already, this is a world of magic. Technology doesn't really exist here. I believe you are from another world. How you got here puzzles me."

Lelouch laced his fingers, drowned in his thoughts.

 _A world of magic? Magic does not exist. It is simply something of fairy tales and legends. Wings on a human could be a result in a crossbreed. But the creatures we encountered on our way here…_

"You have five seconds left."

He snapped out of his thoughts and moved his king forward. He watched for a reaction on Zeyla's face, but was disappointed. Not a single feature moved.

"Moving your king? A bold move." She quietly stated.

"If the king does not lead, how can he expect his subordinates to follow?" he responded with his signature quote.

Zeyla said nothing but moved her queen forward to take out a knight, "Will his subordinates follow even if death is guaranteed? That is what is going to happen if you don't fully answer all my questions. How do you get Geass?"

Lelouch was quiet for awhile then answered, "I do not know."

Zeyla kept her poker face on, "I will ask once more. How do you get Geass?"

Lelouch made his move and answered again, "I said I do not know."

Zeyla glared at him, "Liar." She waved her hand over the chessboard and spoke again, "Tell me. HOW DO YOU GET GEASS?"

Lelouch said, "I do not know. Besides it's your turn. Don't waste your time."

Zeyla gave a cold laugh, "Time is not a matter. We have all the time in the world. Its frozen after all. Take a look."

She spread out her hands. Indeed, time was stopped. At the counter, a glass was mid-spill with the black liquid flowing out of the cup. The coffee had stopped halfway between the floor and table. People had their mouths open and where halfway in speech.

 _Just like Rolo's_

"Yes, just like Rolo's" Zeyla said.

Lelouch whipped around and snarled at her, "Who are you really? Someone else with Geass? Or Code? Or someone with Britannia?"

Zeyla lightly smiled at his dumbness, "I already told you. I am from a different world then you. I am simply a person who can wield magic. Extremely powerful magic. You pitiful humans who rely on technology are nothing compared to us. I will ask one last time, how do get Geass? Last chance or."

"Or what?" Lelouch growled at her.

"Or your dear friend dies." A voice behind him said.

He turned around to see a sword held at Kallen's neck.

"You care for her right? A fellow classmate, one of the few who knows your real identity, and an ace at controlling that machine. You need her for your uprising. Or would you let her die?"

Lelouch glared at her, trying to find a way out.

"It's no use. The only way to keep the flow of time is by me. And I can read your thoughts."

Lelouch lowered his eyes in defeat. He had to admit there was no way out of this. Magic beat technology. "Someone has to bestow it on you. Only certain people can do it."

"And those people are?" Zeyla asked.

"One of them goes by the name C.C. It is nothing you can just randomly get." Lelouch said.

Zeyla bit her bottom lip thinking. If she was to obtain Geass, it was another powerful magic in her inventory, not to mention a foreign magic that no one had a counter attack to. It would be a valuable weapon. How was she going to get it? Lelouch wasn't lying about how to get it, only certain people can hand out Geass.

Of course, how dumb of her.

"May I see your hand for a second?" she sweetly asked, "I won't kill you."

Lelouch warily looked at her, but he extended his arm out.

Zeyla held his hand and pressed her palm into his. The code, the existence, the understanding of Geass ran through her brain. Ancient knowledge about this supernatural power pumped to her brain, through her entire body.

She let go of his hand and sat down in her seat. A confused Lelouch followed her lead and asked, "What was that?"

She said nothing but moved her queen diagonally, "Checkmate."

Lelouch started at the board with bewilderment, "How?"

He felt a tugging on his sleeve, "Are you done yet? I thought you were the champion of chess?"

It was Kallen. Passing off the information to a powerful stranger had shaken him. It didn't matter if the person was from a different dimension or not. The knowledge of Geass was dangerous, probably even more dangerous to someone who could use magic.

"Yes, we're done." Lelouch said.

Zeyla tapped her king and the board disappeared along with the pieces.

She stuck out her hand, "Nice game Lelouch. And nice chat too. You should find a portal in the woods where we met. It should take you to your world where this Britannia exists. I hope we meet again in the future."

Lelouch took her hand and looked her in the eyes. Purple eyes stared back at him. No, his eyes stared back at him.

"Thank you for this meeting. I wish you well Zeyla Amador." He said stiffly. The two exchanged a silent conversation before releasing the handshake.

He motioned for Kallen to follow him and the two exited the café.

On Lelouch's mind was not about the chess game or the weird world they were in, but rather the palm thing Zeyla had done a few moments back. What was that?

"Let's go now Kallen." He said. The two walked out of the town and the trees swallowed them up.

From the café window stood the girl with purple eyes and silver hair. Her hand covered her eye as she watched the pair walk away.

Her hand slipped off her face to reveal an eye.

Instead of purple, it was a red. A red eye with a glowing symbol beneath the pupil. The sign of Geass.

"Thank you Lelouch vi Britannia," Zeyla softly said, "for allowing me to copy Geass. I assure you, this power will be put into good use."


	25. Discovered

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" a voice behind them demanded.

Moyasu, Arashu, and Juden froze in fear. Juden slowly turned around as his mind tried to frantically think of any excuse to get them out of this situation.

"We are… we are the new advisors for the princess. We, um, got lost in this castle. It is magnificent after all! Could you show us the way to her room?"

The man who had called them out stroked his chin in thought, "Now that you mention it, there was news about the princess hiring some new assistants. Are you them?"

The three nodded vigorously.

The man squinted at them, sizing them up, "You all look thin and weak without much muscle.

Are you sure?"

Juden balled up his fists and took a threatening step forward, "What did you say old fart?"

Arashu glared at Juden and held his arm in front of him, "What he meant to say, sir, is that advisors depend on brain power rather than strength. When the princess was looking for new advisors, she did not require for them to be bulky and muscular."

The man frowned and muttered under his breath, "Goody, more smart-ass people telling us what to do."

He raised a hand and gestured for them to follow, "Right this way. You were heading in the opposite direction."

The trio followed the man past dizzying high rooms and hallways, gold edged floors, jewel encrusted doors, and airy hallways until they reached the end of the hall. A simple wooden door stood there.

There were no diamonds sparkling on it or a golden handle. The door had no traces of royalty. Just a wooden door you might see at an inn.

Juden raised a brow and asked the man, "You sure this is the princess's door? Shouldn't she have a fancier door?"

The man shrugged and knocked on the door, "Your highness, your new advisors have arrived. I apologize for the delay."

The group waited outside for a bit until a deep voice responded, "Come in."

Juden placed his hand on the handle and the wooden door slowly creaked open. He inwardly cursed as he saw that there were three other men in the room. Probably the real advisors.

 _Um guys, we may have a problem…._

Arashu got the message right away, "Your highness, I deeply apologize to interrupt, but why did you hired more advisors? Or are they perhaps fakes?"

The princess crossed her arms and glared at him, "That is what I would like to know. I asked for three advisors, I have three come in, the next thing I know, someone else tells me that there are three more."

Juden, Arashu, and Moyasu deeply bowed, "We are not frauds but the real advisors you called for. We humbly are willing to serve you, your highness."

The princess frowned, "And how should I trust you?"

A familiar voice floated from behind them, "Your highness!"

The three turned around to see a blonde haired girl running into the room.

"Your highness! I heard about the situation!"

Juden widened his eyes at the girl.

 _Hisame? What are you doing here?_

Hisame winked at him and responded.

 _Just infiltrating. The usual work._

Hisame bowed to the princess, "The three that came in last are the real ones. I had seen the, come off a carriage that you had sent. The other three, however, had walked here and snuck into the grounds."

The princess nodded and turned to the other "fake" advisors and pointed her finger out the door.

"Frauds, you must not go unpunished. To think you could just come into my castle and whisper false words into my ears is unacceptable. You three will be sentenced into jail for a lifetime."

The princess then turned to Moyasu, Arashu, and Juden, "I am sorry for the miscommunication. However, I did not expect my advisors to be so young."

Arashu stepped forward, "Although we may not seem old and full of wisdom, we have had many experiences in our lives and we do believe we can help you rule this kingdom the best of your abilities."

The princess sat in her chair, deep in thought, "Very well. You are dismissed. Hisame here will lead you to your rooms."

She turned her chair away and faced the window.

Hisame walked forward and nearly pushed the boys out of the door.

Once out of earshot Juden pushed Hisame into the wall, "What the hell are you doing in the castle? I thought you were participating in the GMG!"

Hisame shrugged, "This mission called. Zeyla found out that there would be an opening to come here and she sent me to help you guys along."

Juden choked on air, "But what about the GMG? Who is going to fill in for you? We can't compete with four people!"

She smiled, "Neo can do wonders with illusion magic you know."

He slumped back, "Zeyla is crazy. She is officially the craziest and insane person I have ever met. Her and her plans. What was she thinking?" he grabbed a fistful of hair and groaned.

Hisame grabbed a hold of their wrists and tugged them farther from the princess's room, "Hurry up. We don't want to look suspicious."

* * *

Once she heard that the necklace was on the princess, Zeyla stormed into the castle andwiped the memories of most of the people.

Flinging open the door to the princess's she shouted, "Look at me."

The princess spun around in surprise and Zeyla looked her right in the eye, "You will remember that you have a new servant named Hisame. The other one you fired, understand?"(OMG CODE GEASS hehehehehehe.)

The princesses eyes glazed over, "Yes, your highness."

The sound of footsteps came closer and closer, "Shit, they're here."

She ran past the princess and jumped out the window, hanging onto the ledge, her fingers barely gripping the stone.

"Your highness! Are you alright?" a voice came from the room.

Zeyla held her breath, hoping the princess would give nothing away.

"I'm fine. Nothing has come into the room. What is the matter?"

She could hear a sigh of relief as the guards who had came in heard what she had to say.

Now knowing she was free, Zeyla let go of the ledge and freefalled down to the ground. Just when she was about to crash onto the earth, she flung open her wings and allowed the wind to push her up.

 _Mission accomplished Hisame. You may now enter._

* * *

 **Natsu's POV**

He stood on the balcony of Fairy Tail quietly while the others where hollering their mouths off.

"You okay? You're usually joining the fight."

Erza.

He frowned and stared off into the distance. Glancing over to the side, he saw the Vipers Fang guild.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about stuff."

Erza could clearly see that something was wrong but didn't press for more information.

His mind flashed back to last night.

 _Blood was spilled. Black blood was spilled. He had seen Zeyla again but as a demon. Her light had seemed to flicker out,_ _and she lost her way. The bronze scythe stabbed into his body a countless number of times. She had almost killed his family and threatened Wendy._

 _She was no longer the friend she was back then. She was no longer free._

He felt a shove in his back, "Com'n Natsu, you're up for battle."

Looking up, he saw the viewing lacrima showing the fight between, him and Ichiya. Grinning at the battle, he could feel his old self return, "I'm all fired up."

* * *

Watching the battles was amusing. And funny. And it made her want to jump down and strangle everyone for using the wrong technique. Especially when it was someone who had no strategy and just came in head on.

In other words, Natsu.

The gong started the battle and Natsu charged in head on. Duh.

The battle wasn't anything out of the ordinary. Ichiya then pulled out a perfume and flung it at Natsu. She wrinkled her nose as a horrible odor filled her nostrils. She could see all the other dragon slayers doing the same.

But it wasn't the smell that made her cringe. Natsu jumped back and as he did, a silver chain could be seen from under his scarf. With a new pendant attached to it.

Squinting away the glare of the sun, she could feel her blood run cold.

It was a silver chest. A very familiar silver chest. The chest that had her soul.


	26. Gone a Bit Crazy

The gong signaled the end of the battle, but Zeyla didn't hear it. Blood pounded in her ears as fury shook her body. Her mind was starting to muddle in rage and she couldn't think clearly. How the hell did he get her soul? Her hand clenched into a fist as she tried to calm down.

 _Take a deep breath and count to ten._

 _1_

 _2_

 _3_

 _4_

"AAAGGHH!" she spun around and slammed her fist into the stone wall, shaking the entire structure of the balcony. Again and again, she punched the wall, her eyes reflecting irritation and frustration.

The rest of the guild froze in silence as they watched her, not knowing what to do. Not once had they ever seen Zeyla lose her temper like this. She was the one who always kept her cool, no matter how much someone provoked her. Now was not the case.

The balcony started to sway from all the damage being dealt to it. Someone had to stop Zeyla before she brought the entire section down, but no one dared to get close to her in fear of getting a punch in the face.

Finally, Hikumu decided to step up.

"Wish me luck." He mouthed. Cautiously, he edged closer to her and gently tapped her shoulder. Zeyla swung around, her eyes blazing with anger. Hikumu ducked in anticipation of receiving a blow to the face, but it never came.

He slowly peeked up to see Zeyla heavily breathing, her hands trembling and bloodied as her glazed eyes stared into space.

"Ummm, Zeyla? You there?" Hikumu whispered.

Zeyla's eyes shot to him **,** and he winced at her expression.

It was wild and crazy, but yet it held fear. This was the look of an untamed horse when it was being brought down by a new trainer. Her eyes bore the look of someone hunted.

"Zeyla, are you okay?" he timidly asked, but this time louder.

The look in her eye diminished and was replaced with her usual blank gaze. She looked around and seemed to notice the damage she had caused.

Waving her hand, the stone that had fallen apart repaired itself and she stormed out of the room with a dark aura surrounding her.

Awkward silence hung in the room, moments after she left. The guild darted nervous glances at each other as the time slowly ticked by.

Hikumu stood up from her seat and mumbled, "I'll go check on her." He exited the room and rushed after Zeyla.

An inhuman growl was starting to make its way up Zeyla's throat. It was taking every bit of her will not to blow up the capital. Her soul was now in Natsu's possession and he could kill her any second now.

As usual, he was messing up her life big time. Departing to stadium, she ran toward the hill where she had met Sting the past nights. Smoke literally followed wherever she stepped, like, her footsteps were setting the grass on fire.

Stopping at the top of the hill, she looked around to see of anyone else was there before snapping her fingers.

A popping sound rung through the air and a thin man in a suit materialized before her. The Devil was here.

Not even bothering to greet him, Zeyla grabbed him by the collar and slammed him into tree, pinning him into an uncomfortable position.

"Why. The. Hell. Does. Natsu. Dragneel. Have. My. Soul?" Zeyla said through gritted teeth.

The Devil didn't bother to answer, just gave a light laugh.

"ANSWER ME!" she shrieked. Zeyla could no longer contain her rage and her hand flickered in black flames. Spreading out, the flames soon lit the tree on fire.

"Now that isn't the way to greet someone." The Devil cheekily answered.

"TELL ME NOW!" Zeyla screamed as her body started to gather the surrounding shadows, "TELL ME, OR I'LL-"

"Or what?" the Devil softly said, "Or what? You can't kill me, I'm immortal. You can't threaten me, I can just kill you. You promised me to get your revenge, now here's your opportunity. Go ahead and kill you dear old friend."

"AGH!" her fist around his neck loosened and she stomped the ground in frustration. The Devil straightened his necktie and dusted off his jacket, "My, my, you have a tight grip there young lady. My collar got wrinkled. Remind me to iron it later."

"Shut up and go to hell." Zeyla growled.

Laughing, the Devil responded, "Of course dearie. After all, that's my home!" with a crazy laugh, the Devil faded to mist and disappeared.

Thoughts ran through her head as Zeyla tried to compute what was happening at the moment. Mr. I-live-in-hell had given her soul that he had collected years ago to Natsu. Reason? So he could have some entertainment. Natsu, at any moment now, could simply burn her soul to ashes and wipe her existence from the face of the earth. She was now backed into a corner. A very tiny corner

And the only out? To send Natsu away to the Devil.

* * *

Demons Hour was very worried. Worried to the point where Akaine wasn't setting random things on fire or Yumiya wasn't shooting the ceramic vases in the dorm. They were just sitting in a circle at the dorm's main hall, staring at the floor, all waiting for Hikumu's return.

The tension was thick as they listened to the grandfather clock count the seconds.

 _Tick_

 _Tock_

 _Tick_

 _Tock_

 _Tick_

 _Tock_

The door of the dorm opened and everyone bolted up from their sitting position. A foot stepped in and everyone held in their breath to see who was coming in.

It was Hikumu. Alone. Without Zeyla behind him. God damn it, this was a problem.

Hikumu walked over to the group and spoke, "I can't find her, and I doubt we will be able to. I checked the tracker Neo has on everyone and it didn't appear. Let's just give her time to cool. We don't want Fiore to be blown up to bits."

He took a deep breath before continuing, "We should just stay put. I'm sure she'll come back."

* * *

The shadows provided a cover that hid the trio perfectly from any prying eyes. Tonight they just had one shot to retrieve the precious gem that they had sought for years.

Juden, Moyasu, and Arashu ran down the hallways of the castle, their feet barely skimming the floor. Soon they arrived at the princess's door.

Pulling out a heavy, copper key from beneath the folds of his cloak, Juden unlocked the door in one swift motion. The wooden door slowly swung open with a creek.

Instead of a dark room with the princess her bed, they were greeted with a brightly lit room with someone tied in a chair facing them.

Hisame.

She was bound and gagged to a chair which Juden assumed was cancelling her magic,otherwise she would have gotten out a long time ago. And the three men behind her?

The "Frauds" Hisame had sent away the other day. To make things worse, the entire room was filled with guards, not to mention the Garou Knights and in front of them all was the princess.

Dear god, what had gone wrong?

 _Hisame what happened?_

The princess took a step forward. "You three, you had infiltrated the royal family, sent a false maid, planned to attack me while I was asleep, and intended to steal one of the Royal Family's most prized possessions. What explanation do you have?"

Juden looked around, hoping for any openings, if there were any. The princess could see the desperation in his eyes.

"No use. You are surrounded and the grounds are secured too. You cannot fight your way out. Surrender, and we may put you on trial." She said.

Juden decided to bide some time, "How did you find us out?" he asked cautiously.

The princess stiffened at his words, "Classified."

He then saw Hisame bow her head and send him a thought message.

 _I don't know what happened. She suddenly seemed to wake up from a trance. I don't know if the spell that Zeyla put on her wore off or not, but she came back to her senses. All communication to Zeyla is cut off too._

Damn them all.

Juden grimly locked his jaw. Impossible job number one: Get the gem. Impossible job number two: Get out of here alive. Impossible job number three: get back to Zeyla and get the hell out of Fiore.

This was going to be one long night.

Holding three fingers behind his back, Juden signaled for an attack.

3

2

1

"GO!"

Arashu unsheathed his sword and swung it in an outwards motion. Wind blew outwards and knocked down the first row of guards. Moyasu was right behind him and shot poison at the next row causing the metal armor to melt off. Any extra poison started to burn any exposed skin.

Juden swept his foot under the row of knight in front of him, the shot white electricity in their faces making them drop their weapons.

The fight was slowly pushed out into the hallway as the tide of guards relentlessly fought. Row after row was brought down, but each was replaced with another. Hisame had somehow broken out during the chaos and had joined the fight.

However, even with the four powerful wizards fighting, it was going to be nearly impossible taking on the entire royal army plus the Garou Knights.

Time was running out and Juden was starting to panic. They still hadn't gotten the gem and they were starting to get overwhelmed. There was no way that they were going to get out of here.

The fight was being pushed outside the castle. Juden, Moyasu, Arashu, and Hisame were now on the grounds of the palace. They were now surrounded by the entire force of the royal army.

Chance of getting out alive?

Zero.

Chance of getting the gem?

Zero.

Unless some miracle was going to fly in, they were going to die because Juden had the feeling that the royal army wasn't just going to send them to jail. Nooooo. The look in their eyes told him that their job was to execute them.

* * *

The sound of metal against metal filled the night air as an intense battle was ongoing. The four now had their backs pressed tightly against each other.

Cuts and gashes were all over Juden's body as he tried to catch his breath. Countless bodies were sprawled all over the grass, staining it red. The Garou Knights and the army had done a blow to them and Juden could feel his magic weakening.

So could the opposing side. They were closing in with a new shot of energy after feeling that the enemy was weakening.

"Hisame." He whispered.

Hisame's eyes flickered over to him as soon as she heard her name.

"Get out and find the gem. That's our number one priority. Arashu will get you an opening. Find that gem and run."

Hisame nodded in understanding.

 _Arashu now_

Arashu slammed the point of his sword into the cement ground, the tip sinking in like the stone was soft. A blast of wind blew out and started to form the shape of a dragon. The wind dragon took a deep breath and gave a loud roar. Any guards who were standing were blown back.

Most hit walls or trees and fainted upon impact, but a lucky few were spared and managed to stay awake.

By this time, Hisame had already slipped away and was nowhere to be seen. The army had already regrouped.

Now one big problem. A very, very, very big problem.

They were now apparently a threat to everyone who was in the capital. Which meant that the king had called on help beside the army.

This meant that the other guilds had arrived.

Joy.


	27. Demon at Heart

Hisame's feet echoed through the stone hallways as she frantically ran from the battle. She hated running from battle, but she had to do what was important. Right now, it was finding that damn princess and getting her oh so precious gem.

Supposedly, she was supposed to meet Gray Fullbuster sometime during the stay here (for reference see the chapter when they had just arrived.). So far, she was disappointed. All she had seen was him fighting at the GMG and nothing else. Not to mention his "famous" ice-make was way lower then her expectations.

As in below rock bottom.

But Hisame didn't doubt Zeyla's future predication skill or whatever she wanted to call it. If

Zeyla said she was going to meet him in a battle, then so it be.

Skidding at the end of the hallway, she stopped at the doorway of the princess. As being a temporary maid for the princess of Fiore, she was let in on a few secrets. One very helpful one called the secret passages underneath the castle, which Hisame assumed that the princess and a few guards would have used to escape while they were fighting outside.

Smashing the dresser by the window, Hisame hurried over to the trapdoor that was once hidden by the heavy wooden table.

Flinging the door open, Hisame crawled down the hole. Her first thought?

Brightness.

The tunnel was already lit with multiple torches that sent shadows flickering across the walls and the drip of the water could be heard as she made her way further in.

Now running, Hisame gathered her magic in her hand in case she met anyone. She wasn't failed.

As soon as she was about to round another corner, she could hear footsteps and loud voices. One of them belonged to the princess.

"My knight, are we far enough?" a female voice asked.

The next voice took her by surprise.

"Princess, your highness. You have someone by your side you fought the dragon last year, died and came back. I assure you will be safe. I don't understand why you brought this knight along too. With a few other members of Fairy Tail, you should have no worries."

Hisame had to stifle a laugh. So Gray and some Fairies were here. How convenient. And true according to Zeyla. Having prepared for this, Hisame's hand slipped into her pocket and pulled out a glass vial.

Inside the vial was a glowing red liquid. Imported straight from Igneel to be exact. Before getting stuck on Tenrou Island for seven years, the group had taken a quick trip to a very special volcano where a certain dragon resided.

In short, they managed to bottle some flames and lava into an enchanted bottle. The only reason Hisame could hold the glass without burning herself was because she was a ice make mage and an ice dragon slayer.

Tipping her head, she saw that the all the backs were turned to her. In one swift movement, she uncapped the bottle with a pop and threw the vial in the mages direction.

Turning away to avoid getting scorched, she could hear screams of pain, especially from the princess.

Hisame cast an ice shield over herself and cautiously started to walk toward the fire.

Through the haze of the heat, she could out the shape of Gray with his arms crossed and the rest of the Fairy Tail wizards behind him.

Of course, he would be the only one who could stand this attack.

Raising herself up upon a block of ice she called out, "Gray Fullbuster of Fairy Tail!"

She could see the dark blue, almost black, hair of Gray lift and look at her. Emotions flashed across his eyes. Anger, rage, frustration, and then shock, finally reorganization.

"Nano?" he croaked out.

* * *

The battle was still raging strong as time slid by. The other guilds had joined, making the battle much harder. Juden ended up taking up fifteen wizards and ten knights at one time, while others continued to surge forward when one fell.

This was a full on battle against three wizards. Backs pressed against another, they could feel sweat running down the side of their faces despite the cold night air.

They were at their end.

"Did you call an emergency?" Juden mumbled over his shoulder.

"Yup, ten times. I don't know what's taking them so long." Arashu replied.

They all held their weapons up warily as the enemy faced them. With no way out, they were going to die fighting. Not too bad of a death.

"Bro, I'm sorry for stealing 1,000 jewels from your account." Juden said to Moyasu. He took a deep breath as white electricity crackled across his hand.

"See you in hell."

Letting out a war cry, the three charged in opposite directions, each fighting for their own lives.

Suddenly, the ground gave a rumble and dirt flew in all directions, slamming into many mages.

Out from the hole popped out a green haired girl, only the age of eleven. She hopped out the hole and jumped onto solid ground.

Placing a hand on her hip, she surveyed the scene.

Sending thanks to the sky, Juden had to grin. The demons were here.

"Hana!" he shouted.

He could see the little green head twist in his direction. Returning his grin, he heard her high pitch voice, "We're here. Sorry, had to travel underground so it took longer. Who are we fighting?"

Juden frantically motioned to everyone who was attacking him.

Hana gave him a cute smile and tapped the ground. Green vines sprouted out of the ground and rapidly began to grow and tangle themselves onto the legs of the other magicians.

Hana then flung her hand over her head and the vines whipped upwards, throwing the mages a good hundred yards away.

She turned innocently to him and gave a little giggle.

"Was that good enough?" she asked.

Juden mentally slapped himself and gave a tiny shake of his head.

Tuning back to her he asked, "Where are the rest of them."

He heard of groan coming from the hole, "You know, I would appreciate it if I wasn't referred to as them. It doesn't exactly make me feel loved."

Out from the tip of the hole was a flash of famous white hair. Neo had come.

He pulled himself out and brushed the dirt off his clothing.

Pressing his palms together, the grass on the ground grew taller and taller until it was above their heads.

Sending a smirk over to Juden, "Just speeding up the life of the grass."

His smirk faded and a more serious look was replaced on his face, "By the way, not all of us are here. Some of the guild are looking for Zeyla."

Juden's eyebrows rose. Zeyla rarely left the guild and in an emergency like this, she was usually the first on the battlefield swinging her sword left and right, bringing down the enemies.

"What happened?" he asked.

He saw Neo grimace, "She threw a mini temper tantrum and we don't know what happened after that."

Now this was even more of a surprise. Losing her temper was nothing like her. But now was not a time to worry. The opposing force was starting to recover and they had no time to waste.

Risking a glance behind him, he could see that Yumiya, Eria, Hikari, and Umie had joined the fight.

Sadly, Hikumu and Akaine were nowhere to be found.

Just great. The top fighters of the guild .

It didn't matter that much. With the new reinforcements, they started to change the tide in their favor.

Literally.

Umie summoned a tidal wave and swept on wall of knights and mates away.

500 down, a million to go.

" I'm all fired up!" A voice rang through the grounds.

There was only one owner to that annoying voice.

"Natsu Dragneel." he growled under his breath.

Looking around for him, Juden started to plan out something ridicules. Enough to make Zeyla's plan look normal.

"Natsu Dragneel," he bellowed, "Son of Igneel, member of Fairy Tail."

The fighting stopped to look at him. Natsu stood on a fallen stone pillar, glaring at him.

"So you're the one who caused this. Not surprising." Natsu snarled.

Juden snorted, "What is that supposed to mean? I think Fairy Tail causes more trouble than us."

Natsu shot a questioning look at him, "What do you mean by us?"

Juden pulled on a superior face and called out to every mage and knight, "To all fighting for your lives or the kingdom! Listen up." He raised his hands and gestured for all available members of Demons Hour to form a group.

"We are Demons Hour! The most feared guild of all time, the guild that took over the Balam Allegiance. We are the ones who had started the Red Revolt and created the Demons Gate. We have the power of the Devil himself."

He started rambling about the power and achievements that one of the most hated guilds of all time had done. His crazy idea?

Talking to them, buying time hoping Hikumu and Zeyla would come in, and maybe, just maybe, the people would too afraid to attack them.

Or it could the other way where they realized that they were fighting one of the strongest guilds and wanted to capture them.

Or kill them.

Both would result in a bad ending for his life.

Sadly, his plans were not as good as Zeyla's. With his luck, he should have expected it to go the bad way. And it just _had_ to start with Natsu yelling out.

"You evil asses! You were the ones who attacked Fairy Tail the other night. Come to me. Fight me!"

And of course, this started a chain reaction with the other guilds.

"Yeah let's get them!"

"They already harmed all the other wizards?"

"Get them while we can before they escape. Cleanse the world of evil."

"I'd gladly die fighting if it meant getting rid of this filth."

Juden sheepishly turned over to the guild and gave a half-hearted shrug, "I tried?"

Neo pressed his fingers on his temples and shook his head, "You can't make plans anywhere near Zeyla's. At least ones that work."

Juden turned back to the swarm of magicians in front of him.

"Who's ready to fight some blood-thirsty mages?"

* * *

The shadows enveloped her as she stormed through the streets, setting everything on fire. Funny thing was that no one was in the buildings or streets.

It was like everyone had evacuated.

At least she was venting her anger out. She hadn't lost her temper since her big blowout with Natsu so many years ago. The feeling was horrible.

It was like she had no control of her thoughts and actions. And that was one thing that made her angrier.

Having no control at all.

It was like your mind didn't matter, like your thoughts didn't count.

Breathing heavily, she leaned against the wall of a ruined brick wall.

"Iberia?" a worried voice reached her ear.

Her hands flew into a defensive position and she crouched down, ready to fight.

Out from the shadows stepped out a blonde.

Sting. In all of times, he had to find her like this. Crap, her eyes were purple. Her hair was fine considering she was sucking in the shadows.

Sting tilted her head, "Why aren't you evacuated, or at least in the battle?"

"Battle?" Zeyla asked.

Oh dear, had Juden and the rest of the group been found out? That was probably the only reasonable explanation.

"I don't know the exact details but apparently four extremely powerful wizards infiltrated the castle and were after some heirloom. Rumor had it that it was some kind of powerful relic. If they got their hands on it, the kingdom, no the world would be in danger."

Ok, so she was right. They had screwed up.

She found her eyes on Sting's earring, one of the gems that were required for opening the Gate, but she couldn't just force herself to kill him or knock him unconscious.

She winced at her hesitation. What was wrong with her? All she needed to do was stab him anywhere or place some kind of spell on him, and she was free to take the gem. So why was she hesitating?

Sting saw her wince and he stepped forward in concern, "Are you alright? Hurt anywhere?"

Zeyla took a step backward away from him, but not before Sting saw her eyes.

"Purple? I thought your eyes were green." He said skeptically.

"I had contacts; this is my original eye color." She mumbled.

Sting sent lopsided grin that made her chest stretch, "I like purple better."

He walked over to the wall where she was standing and faced her. He gently took her hands looked over to the side.

"I just want to let you know, if you go into the battle, promise you'll come back." He said softly.

Zeyla rolled her eyes. Of course she wouldn't die. Demons hour wouldn't attack her, they would welcome her with open arms.

"Promise me." He said, his voice quieter this time.

"Why?" she asked, "It doesn't matter if I die or not, right?"

Sting sharply turned his head over to her, his eyes meeting hers, "Of course it does!" he exclaimed, "I know I just met you and I get it, this will sound cliché. When I met you, you were different. You didn't fawn over me. I think you hated me. Maybe now even. I guess what I'm trying to say is that, you gave me a challenge, and during the challenge, you made me fall hard. For you."

Zeyla felt her heart twist in pain as he said those words. If only he knew the truth. If he knew the lives she took. If he knew the sea of blood she spilled. If he knew the pain she had caused. If he knew the evil she brought to the world.

If he ever knew all of that, he wouldn't be talking to her like this. He wouldn't even be here holding her hand, speaking to her.

The next thing she knew, his lips were on hers.

It was even better than the first time. She melted into him as his arms wrapped her protectively, like was never going to let her go. This time, it was soft, like he was afraid of hurting her. Her mind went fuzzy and her thoughts muddled.

Trying to break through the bliss, Zeyla tried to remember her goal.

 _You need the gem, nothing else. He is disposable, he means nothing._

Her hand crept to his ear and quietly snapped off the gem. Although it pained her, she made another gem, a fake, and replaced the empty spot.

She broke off the kiss and turned away.

"I'm sorry, I have to go now." She murmured sadly. Slipping the gem into her pocket, she started to walk away.

Stopping at the edge to the ruined building she turned back to face Sting, "Sting, I'm sorry for this."

She slammed her palm on the floor and the shadows zoomed over and formed bindings that tightly wrapped around Sting.

She could clearly see the shock on his face as soon as she attacked him. Sending a sad look in his direction, "Never let a demon too close to your heart. No matter how pretty they are, they are rotten to the core."

With that, she walked away, the darkness clinging to her every step.


	28. I was Nano

"Nano?"

Hisame stepped forward with her arms crossed. On her face was a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Yes Gray. My name was Nano. Remember that little girl so many years ago?"

(For those who do not understand this right now, read Ice Trail which is a spin off for when Gray was young. It's on Manga Stream J)

Gray couldn't find any words. His mouth refused to speak and his mind was going haywire. So many questions floated around in his mind.

What was she doing here? Was she the one who attacked us? If so, why? He had helped her escape before.

Hisame took another threatening step toward Gray and glared down at him.

"Thanks to you, you led a trail for the guild to follow us. That night, the remaining survivors came over to my house and murdered my parents in front of my eyes." She then laughed bitterly, "But I shouldn't be that harsh on you. After all, you were trying to help me. You intentions were good, but-"

Hisame leaned in into his face, "Your actions weren't. I left the village that night. That dammed guild set the place on fire. I ran away, far, so I wouldn't have to relive the memories. And guess what?" her voice was starting to drip in sarcasm, "In honor of my "savior" I learned ice make magic and left my other useless magic behind. I also learned Ice dragon slayer magic from a dear friend in hopes one day, I could meet you again and see I wasn't the little fraidy cat I once was."

Hisame's eyes were now narrowed to slits now, her anger nearly bursting out, "I took on a new identity. I was longer known as Nano. One day, I remembered the day you brought me back home. You practically dragged me into a death trap." Her voice dropped into a low whisper, "And you Gray, the prey now bites back. You'll be the first to see my rage."

Her hand slammed onto the ground. The stone floor cracked as a white-blue light shone from underneath.

"Snow dragon secret art! Northern Lights Aura: Sheer Cold!"

The white lights changed into a swirling array of the rainbow, with colors ranging from soft red, deep blue, and bright green.

The lights twisted together into a single point and pointed a Gray. He could feel intense cold radiating from it. Glancing at Hisame, he could see she had a crazy, satisfied grin on her lips.

"Consider this as our last good-bye." She said.

The last this he saw was a blur of colors racing toward him.

* * *

The guild was split as each pushed the opposing force down. What was happening now in the kingdom was like a repeat of last year with the dragons except this time, they were fighting other wizards instead of dragons.

With the new wave of energy, Demons Hour was able to push back, but barely. Three of their top fighters were nowhere to be seen. And when it was ten against the entire kingdom, you needed every fighter you could get.

The sun was starting to creep out above the horizon, sending a golden glow onto the ground, bathing every surface in its glory. A new day had arrived.

However, this was not the time for admiring its beauty. Sending attack after attack, Demons hour pressed outwards forcing the others back, buying both space and time.

As Arashu stabbed another victim in the chest, the man, with blood running down from the wound, laughed weakly.

He smirked, "What's wrong? Need to feel more pain?"

The man smiled up at him with victory, "It doesn't matter anymore. No matter how many you slay, in the end we're going to win. The Magic council has… they have…" the man took one last breath before his eyes glazed over.

Arashu dragged his sword out of the chest in worry and shook the man by his shoulders, "The Magic Council has what? Tell me!"

There was no answer, just the sound of blood dripping onto the ground.

This was really bad now if the magic council was involved. And they weren't probably going to launch one of their weapons in risk they would kill the other guilds.

There was one option left.

Arashu's eyes widened in realization.

"DAMN IT! THE TEN WIZARDS SAINTS ARE COMING!"

Juden spun around in panic, "What?"

This was a nightmare. Ish. Ok not really, but still pretty bad.

The situation now.

They were fighting against the top guilds of Fiore plus the royal army. Now the Ten Wizard Saints were going to join the fight. And also probably Crime Sorcery. They still hadn't opened their second origin which was good, but the problem was that Zeyla, Hikumu, and Akaine still wasn't here.

Woopdedo.

"Calm down, we're more powerful than them." Neo said coolly.

"Yeah only if we haven't been fighting for like five hours continuously!" Juden protested, "Not to mention almost all of Compass Rose is missing!"

A golden light shone brightly about a hundred feet away from where they were standing.

The Ten Wizard Saints had arrived.

A few faces they recognized like the Master of Fairy Tail and Jura from Lamina Scale, but the rest were cloaked, the fabric covering their faces.

Demons Hour shifted into an attack formation, their backs facing inwards and their hands and swords up, ready to fight.

The middle figure of the Ten Wizards Saints raised a wooden staff and tapped it twice on the ground.

Demons Hour stood there warily, waiting for something to happen. Suddenly Hana screamed, "Everyone, run from this spot!"

She raised her hands up to the sky and vines dragged them up into the air. Neo had teleported others to the side.

Not a second too soon.

As soon as they left the spot they were once standing on, flaming plants erupted out of the ground setting the entire spot of fire. Had they stayed there any longer, they would have been burnt to crisp.

Juden sharply turned to the one who attacked them. "Who are you?" he asked harshly.

From beneath the folds of the cloak came out a withered, wooden looking hand as if it was part of a tree.

In his hand started to grow a tiny blue plant. As soon as it started to flower, Hana crossed her arms and a barrier of thick wooden vines started to grow in front of them.

"Sleeping powder!" she exclaimed.

Neo faced Demons Hour, "We have no choice. Activate second origin."

From the outside, everyone could see a blinding light emitting from the tiny cracks of the barrier. Silence followed once the light had dimmed down, as they didn't know what to expect. A cracking noise started the come from the wall and the Ten Wizard Saints took a cautious step back.

Without a warning, the wall in front of them exploded with a red light. They shielded their eyes from the heat and brightness. As they opened their eyes, they could see ten figures rise from the rubble with eyes glowing.

"What happened?" Jura murmured to himself.

Neo snarled, his teeth showing through, "We're still alive and well. Come and get us."

* * *

Akaine was having problems of her own at the moment. First off, she was away from the battle. Second, she was lost. Like really lost. Lost to the point she was tempted to blow everything in her way so she could find her way out of the maze of towering buildings.

"AGH! WHY DO THEY HAVE TO MAKE EVERYTHING SO CONFUSING HERE?"

She punched her fist into the nearest wall, setting the building on fire. In less than ten seconds, the building had burned down to rubble.

She glared at the wall and crossed her arms. Groaning, Akaine rolled her eyes and said, "Whatever, it's not like I'm coming back here anytime soon."

Gently pressing her palm to the surface of the ground, she started chanting.

 _From the sun in space_

 _To the magma in earth_

 _From the heat of the stars_

 _To the breath of the dragons_

 _Come together to form as one_

 _Aestus Unda Fluctuum!_

The ground started to give an ominous rumble and the stars in the night sky turned a blood red. The sun seemed to rise out into the night sky. The dirt ground exploded and red hot magma burst out from the cracks. The stars rained down like red glitter and the sun shone brighter, powering Akaine.

Needless to say, the town was soon one fire, everything burnt to charcoal. Akaine put her hand on her hip and surveyed the scene in front of her.

"Not bad." She commented.

"WHAT IN EARTHLAND WERE YOU DOING?" a familiar voice screamed in her ear.

Whoops.

"Hi Zeyla. How has your night been?" she greeted meekly. Turning around, she saw Zeyla towering over her, the corner of her lips pulled down.

"I was casting a spell?" the answer coming out more like question.

The frown turned into a grin, "Brilliant." Zeyla said, "Ready to go into battle?"

Akaine furrowed her eyebrows, "What about Hikumu?"

Zeyla waved the question off, "I contacted him. He's going too."

Akaine could start to feel a grin creeping onto her face, "Who's ready to whoop some royal booties?"


	29. Saved by the Sun

Hisame coldly looked down at the body before her. Blood poured out of the wound that was near his heart. Each time his heart pumped, the faster it flowed out of the hole.

Gray's eyes were still open, his breaths now ragged as he fought for every gulp of air. His eyes betrayed surprised, pain, and a tinge of sadness.

The princess and the rest of the Fairy Tail guild members were encased in ice, their last movements frozen.

Hisame calmly walked over to the frozen princess, her footsteps booming compared to the eerie silence. Her fingertips brushed over the ice as her gaze flickered back to Gray.

His eyes were starting to lose life, and his breathing was getting shorter and shorter. Gray's life seemed to be coming to an end. The sight made the tip of her mouth curl up. He deserved it.

Her hand pressed down into the frosty surface and the gem on the princess's neck started to come toward her palm like a magnet attracts metal.

The gem finally popped free from the ice and Hisame tossed it from hand to hand, examining it. Feeling satisfied, she pocketed the treasure and started heading back up.

Right when she was about to turn the corner, she spoke, "You're not going to die you know."

She could hear the struggling stop as soon as the words left her mouth.

"You're Fairy Tail right? Keep on fighting. Prove me wrong." She said.

Those words would change her forever.

* * *

Dawn had approached and the darkness was now cast away. The clouds glowed gold against the rose dusted sky. The beauty stopped there.

Right at the horizon, colorful sparks and smoke rose into the endless sky as the battle raged on. Each force was fighting their hardest, none wanting to give up.

Across the sky, a figure could be seen flying across the rising sun. Suddenly, the sky turned midnight black. The fighting immediately ceased and the heads of the fighters turned upwards to face the sky. Whispers darted throughout as the panic started to rise.

Neo furrowed his eyebrows, "If this isn't an eclipse, what is it then?" The rest of the guild shrugged helplessly.

A glowing dot slowly started to grow against the black heavens, casting a warm light across the ruined ground. It grew larger and larger until it formed the shape of a phoenix, wings spread out and head lifted in pride.

It zoomed in.

No one had time to scream or even react. The phoenix hurled toward the battlefield with its wings tucked in. Its beak slammed into the stone as if it was made of wet clay, setting everything in its radius on fire.

Anyone near the golden flames was instantaneously vaporized.

The flames retracted and started to come together. Twisting as one, the fire reached up into the skies creating a connection between the earth and heaven.

A voice could be heard from within the mess of golden colors.

"Niflheim Inferno!"

Juden could feel a smile on his face once those words had reached his ears. Their top fighters had come.

Feeling a tugging on his shoulder, he turned to face a panicked Neo.

"Quick we have to get farther away before she-"

He never got to finish his sentence. The golden flames already started to expand and throb giving off a blinding light. Neo and Juden turned their heads to avoid the brightness. Crossing his arms, Neo hastily cast a protective spell.

Not a moment too soon.

BOOM

The entire area around the flames exploded and melted into red hot lava. The lava rapidly began to spread, consuming anything and everything that was in its way. The wizards frantically retreated, not wanting to become part of the hot slime.

Soon, Neo and Juden were surrounded with lava.

"Where is everyone else?" Juden said, shouting over the hissing of the molten rock.

Neo tilted his head up to the sky.

Against the sky was Hikumu supporting the rest of the guild as he floated above the magma with his wings.

Before the lava could flood into the city, the lava turned black and frost steamed off. The once liquid rock was now solid.

From the middle of the ruins rose a familiar figure.

With her crimson red hair that fell past her hip and her blazing fiery eyes, Akaine rose from the ashes like a reborn phoenix. Her cape swayed in the morning wind. In her hand was her unsheathed sword.

Glowing orange symbols were etched on the handle as the blade of the sword was raging with godly fire. A calm look was pasted on her face as she slowly raised her free arm.

Extending her finger out, Akaine pointed to the solid rock around her.

No one knew what to expect of her. What was going to happen next?

Akaine suddenly burst into laughter, filling the empty silence.

"Oh. My. God. You should have seen your faces when I came in. That, my friends, was priceless. No joke!"

Everyone let out the breath that they had been holding. Akaine gave a lopsided grin and dropped her arm to her side.

Demons Hour walked up to her in relief. They had been saved by her.

"Why did you point at the rock?" Hana questioned.

A smirk grew on Akaine's face, "No reason, it just seemed dramatic."

However, Juden held back from the conversation.

Something was still gone. Someone was still away.

Realization dawned on him.

Zeyla was still missing.

* * *

Natsu ran farther and farther from the terror. Not once in his life had he seen such powerful magic. It was enough to rival Acnologia. Sprinting blindly through the streets, he found himself at a tall building.

With its glossy marble structure and elegant curves all topped together with a cross in the front, Natsu knew where he had ended up.

A church.

He was not the normal one to pray, but this was time of desperation. He walked in the large doors.

As soon as he entered, he could feel a sense of security, like the fragile walls of the church could protect him from anything. He walked deeper and deeper until he reached the endpoint.

It was a large airy room with the ceiling looming over his head. The walls stood a good distance apart, giving the appearance of a large room. Well above his head were large windows. His breath caught.

The windows held stained glass, little pieces of shattered, colored glass that had been skillfully pieced together into an intricate design.

With the dawn, the sunlight that shone into the glass created colored patterns on the ground, washing the entire church in soft colors.

"So you're here too. What a pleasant surprise."

His head snapped to the front of the room. There in the front stood a familiar face.

"Zeyla?" he croaked out.

A smile crossed her face as she started to walk forward. Natsu's hand set on fire, ready to defend himself.

She rose her hands up in a show of peace, "No need Natsu. We just need to talk."

Natsu lowered his hand a fraction of a degree.

Zeyla's eyes softened, "Natsu, please understand, I have nothing to do with this, trust me. You know me."

Natsu dropped his hand, his defense lowering.

She took that opening.

Pulling out a sword from her compartment, Zeyla unfurled her wings and flew toward Natsu. Her eyes had lost their caring look and were now filled with rage and madness.

He barely had time to dodge.

The edge of the sword glanced his arm. Blood tricked out, but no pain followed. Instead, a feeling of dread spread out from his soul and through his body, deep into his bones. He could feel his body weakening. Soon, he was collapsed on his knees.

"What…how…?" he whispered, his energy nearly gone.

"Soul Stealer. You're feelings will be gone forever. Your soul is gone and sold to the Devil. And I'll be taking mine back."

Her hand reached out to Natsu's neck and snapped the chain off.

"I believe this is mine."


	30. The Fourth Great Magic

The ground was reduced to burnt charcoal and the smoke rose to the sky, coloring it a dusty gray. No signs of life were seen across the ruins. Demons Hour stood on top of the stone, the wind gently ruffling their hair. All was quiet. It was like a new start, a revival of the earth.

Hisame had returned with the gem in her hand. She had no problem getting out. She had decided to leave the princess and the rest of Fairy Tail frozen forever beneath the castle. They would melt until few million years later. Unless someone thawed them, which was probably going to happen, but getting them out of the way for awhile would be a relief.

Demons Hour took a survey of the scene around them.

"Akaine, where's Zeyla?" Juden asked, popping a question.

Akaine rested her arm on the hilt of her blade and tilted her head in wonder, "Now that you mention it, I honestly don't know. I came in and I thought she was behind me. I guess not…" she finished trailing off at the end.

 _Flashback_

 _Akaine's and Zeyla's feet were skimming over the rocky ground as their wings fiercely beat. Black against fiery red, the two flew through the streets at astonishing pace._

 _As they got closer and closer, the sigs of battle became more and more evident. Colored sparks from magic could be seen against the dark night sky and the sounds of screams and pain rung through the air. The tang of blood had reached both noses and the clang of metal against metal screeched in their ears._

 _The battle was still going strong._

 _Akaine's hand slipped to her side where she felt the familiar material of her favorite and powerful sword._

 _She had never unsheathed it unless of important times. The only time she had was when her dying friend passes it on to her and she saw the blade. All other times, she had kept its sheath._

 _She knew the power of the sword. Once unlocked of its binding, it could release tremendous power. The flames of hell and the cold of the depths of the underworld would be unleashed, thus the name Inferno Niflheim._

 _Her grip tightened on the hilt. She knew this was an important time and great measures had to be taken._

 _The time flew by fast. They were soon at the battle scene. Below them were unmoving bodies and red-stained ones. At the center, they could see their guild fighting their hardest._

 _Hand on hilt, Akaine pulled out her sword, the metal grating against the titanium covering. Red, glowing symbols started to swirl and float around the blade. Closer and closer they got to the blade until they seared into the metal. Instead of the cool silver, the blade was now glowing a hot orange._

 _Akaine spread out her flame wings and dived in, not even bothering to check behind her back to see if Zeyla was following._

 _She wasn't. Zeyla hung back and watched Akaine deliver her blow. Her hand reached out and grasped a simple sword from thin air._

 _Closing her eyes, she let her vision spread across the city, trying to find a certain figure._

 _There._

 _He was running away as fast as he could toward a tall building._

 _It was rather hard to miss what the building was. It was the church._

 _Giving a small ruffle of her feathered, black wings, she zoomed down toward the ground, only intention of reaching the destination before her foe did._

 _No one noticed._

 _Yet._

* * *

Gray stared at the ceiling of the corridor as the life slowly seeped out of him. Only moments before, an old face had came barging in.

He didn't really know what to think. Should he be mad? Sad? The real feeling in his heart was more like disappointment.

He wanted to see Nano, or now Hisame, ever since they departed and went on separate paths. He thought of her cute little smile when they had fought against the guild that caged her in and the tears that flowed down her face when she was reunited with her family.

And yet, the time when they met once more, she had changed.

She was full of cold, calm anger and cruel, powerful magic.

She had changed.

Yet those words she last said to him made Gray wonder. The words echoed in his head over and over again.

 _"You're Fairy Tail right? Keep on fighting. Prove me wrong."_

 _Fairy Tail._

Fairy Tail was his family, his home when he was gone and afraid, a place where he could be himself.

And what did Fairy Tail do?

Never give up.

Keep fighting for their friends.

His family was out there fighting for their loves while he was down here being useless and almost dying.

Natsu's voice filled his ears.

 _"You don't die for your friends, you live for them!"_

Gray's breath grew shallower and shallower and his vision began to blur and darken. He was dying. He could feel it.

His fingers and toes started to numb and his heart was beating slower. With all the energy he had left, he placed his right arm over his arm and whispered, "I love you Fairy Tail, my family, my home."

His vision went black.

* * *

Demons Hour stiffened when Akaine finished her sentence. Where was Zeyla?

A crack could be heard through the empty air. Juden and Akaine snapped their heads toward each other and nodded.

A grim smile spread over Akaine's face, "I think I know where she is now."

Little by little, Neo teleported the entire guild over to the church.

From the back, Hisame caught her breath.

The beautiful stained glass that was high on top of the structure was now shattered with shards all over the grass. White flames danced with orange flames and shouts and grunts could be heard from the outside.

The graceful marble columns that once held the roof of the entrance was now reduced to the ground, cracks and dirt running all over it.

Picking up the pace, the guild raced in to an astonishing scene.

It was a full out one on one battle.

Natsu was blowing his flames any chance he could, which was not often. Every single step he took was meant for survival. In his hand, however, was a broken chain with a tiny silver pendent.

Zeyla looked furious as she swung her sword, delivering blows onto Natsu's body. Demons Hour had just missed it.

 _A few moments ago._

 _Natsu felt dread in his heart as he felt the chain of the necklace snap off. Zeyla had gotten her prize. She stood up from his body and was making her way out when Natsu felt a calling in his heart._

 _It was a cold icy feeling, some kind of magic that was familiar, a magic he had been around since he was a child._

 _The answer came to him._

 _Gray._

 _What had happened? The feeling was not a good one. It was more like a feeling of death, almost like Gray was fading from the world_

 _He closed his eyes in dismay. It was possible._

 _In this battle against the most powerful mages, a powerful spell from any one of them would be fatal._

 _This tiny cut from that sword had made him fall to his knees._

 _Was all hope lost?_

 _No_

 _He was Fairy Tail. Fairy Tail was unbreakable. No matter how many times they fell. They would always get up with the help of their family. This was not an exception. Putting his hand over his heart, he prayed that he would never lose strength for Fairy Tail_

 _A warm feeling spread through his limbs and strength seemed to return to his body._

 _A glittering light covered his body as an outline started to form near him._

 _A bowed, young girl with flowing white hair kneeled next to him and he heard her whispered words._

 _"You have found the secret fourth Great Magic of Fairy Tail. We fight from our hearts. We care and we love. We may feel despair along the way, but we have our friends and family o dry the tears. We may fall on the path, but there is a hand to pull us up once again. This is the fourth Great Magic: Fairy Holy Rejuvenation."_

 _Natsu could feel the death push away and he pulled himself onto his feet._

 _"No." he said in a clear voice._

 _He saw the shoulders of Zeyla stop cold and she turned around. Her eyes narrowed and she saw him on his feet._

 _"My, my you are one hard person to kill." She snarled._

 _Natsu didn't waste time. He lunged forward, snatching the chain from her grasp. Zeyla gripped her sword tighter and swung at his leg. It grazed it, but this time, he didn't feel the dread. The spell had somehow changed that._

 _The features on Zeyla's face tightened when she saw that. Summoning white flames in her palm, she shot attack after attack at him. Each burnt part of him, causing pain, but it didn't matter. He had to get out alive. He had to live._

 _The door of the church fell down and a group walked in. Her guild had come._

 _Flashback end._

Demons Hour stood at the doorway, eyes wide open in wonder. How was Natsu still alive?

A thunder of feet came behind them and they turned.

In the lead was Master Macarov, his white mustache twitching.

A low growl escaped his mouth, "No hurting my brats. You are going to pay for this."

The members of Fairy Tail swarmed in, each targeting one of the members. Once one fell, another helped and kept fighting. It was a never-ending wave.

A slice could be heard through the din and all heads turned.

Zeyla had been fighting the master, Guildarts, and Erza. One slice across had all brought them down to the ground.

Zeyla flapped her wings and shot up into the air.

"Listen Fairy Tail!" she called out to the crowd, her eyes blazing red in anger, "Stop at once or you will all end up just like them."

Pointing to her fallen victims she continued, "I wish to bring no harm to you, but there is one individual who has to go."

Folding her wings in, she dropped like a rock to the floor of the church.

Right in front of Natsu.

"Our last good-bye, dear friend."

She swung.


	31. A Bleeding Heart

A loud shattering resounded through the heavy dread. Bits of what seemed like glass flung in all directions as Zeyla swung her sword down at Natsu's neck. Heopened his eyes that he had been squeezing shut. His hand flew to his neck to find it perfectly intact with no blood dripping out.

Zeyla looked down in confusion. Her emotion quickly changed to rage. In front of Natsu was Gray.

In his hand was an ice sword with glittering light swirling around the hilt and tip as he struggled to hold the force that she was applying. Zeyla's eyes darted over to Hisame to see her face clouded with confusion.

Impossible. He should be dead.

Hisame then remembered her words she had said back under the castle.

 _You're Fairy Tail right? Keep on fighting. Prove me wrong._

Idiot. Idiot. Idiot.

Hisame kept cursing herself. Damn herself for giving any encouragement. This was Fairy Tail they were dealing with! Despite their weak powers, their stupid, stupid trait made them unbeatable.

 _"Love and family."_ Hisame thought, irritated, _"They keep fighting for them. They never give up. Never."_

Zeyla's gaze flickered back to Gray. If Hisame had left him for dead and he was standing here…

 _The glitter… of course._

"I assume you found the Fourth Great Magic too?" she asked tightly.

Gray's head snapped up at the question, disbelief etched across his face. Zeyla put on a bitter smile, "Darling, there is nothing you can hide from me."

She lifted her sword once again and swung down at his body. This time, the cold ice shattered completely, flying up into the air. Zeyla's hand thrust up, her fingers making a clawing gesture.

The bits of ice suspended in air and morphed into shards, each capturing the red light of the morning dawn.

Her hand went down.

The shards zoomed past her and dug into Gray's skin. The fragments hacked into the soft human flesh like it was made of paper, causing blood to gush down his body, but the blood wasn't red, nor black like a few nights before.

It was a pale blue, reflecting the color of the ice that had just torn up his body. Behind her, Zeyla could hear a stifled gasp of horror and disgust.

A smirk crossed her face. That was the sound she liked to hear.

"Say it!" she declared loudly, "Scream! Hurl in disgust! I don't care. Fairy Tail, this is your end."

She darted past Natsu, who in the time that she was fighting Gray had retreated to a safe corner. Quicker than lightning, she spread out her feathery, black wings and snatched the chain that held her soul from Natsu. With a triumphant grin, Zeyla held up the chain in the glory of the morning. She stepped up to the shrine that stood at the front of the church.

The sun has broke dawn and was creeping higher into the sky. Shafts of light waved through the stained windows and bathed the shrine in light. Closing her eyes, Zeyla placed a relaxed hand on top of the chest.

The silver treasure slowly grew until it was back to its original size. Zeyla then pried the lid open and greedily stared at the contents. To others, the inside would seem to be an empty, black void. To Zeyla, however, it was much more. She could see the silvery substance that was swimming inside its confinements. The power that it radiated was immeasurable and overwhelming.

This was her soul. Zeyla had gone so long without it. Feeling it back in her body would be refreshing.

She dipped her hand into the abyss and scooped her silver soul out. Bringing it to her face, she inhaled deeply.

Many would say on that day, that very moment, they felt a chill go down their spine and a loud scream. A loud, insane yet happy scream. Most would ignore it and say it was the devil's day or perhaps it was the neighbor's cat getting stung. The chill they blamed on the cold weather.

But to everyone in the battle, they knew, or they thought, what was happening.

Zeyla shuddered a little as her soul was replaced into her body. Dead stillness hung in the air. What was going to happen?

Agonizing moments passed as Zeyla stood still in front of all of them.

She finally opened her eyes.

No, not her eyes.

They were now empty, a blank white, just like a new painters canvas. A new change could be felt in the atmosphere too.

An ancient magic held thick in the air, making it hard to breathe. Pressure was building like the moment before a volcano was about to explode.

Zeyla flicked a finger, and Levi and Gajeel were flung back into the wall. What happened next was horrifying.

The two bodies slumped down and slowly started to disintegrate. The skin and clothes turned into a fine, grainy sand. It started from the top and crumbled down to their feet.

Once the shell had fallen off, all that was left was a pale outline of their ghost. Out of Zeyla's mouth whispered a few words.

"Mea est anima tua. Veni, et venit finis tuus."

Fairy Tail exchanged, confused at the language. Demons Hour however understood.

Drilled with thousands of hours of ancient languages, this was not a new one.

It was the dead language, Latin.

Translated it meant,

 _"Your soul is mine. Come and meet your end."_

Powerful words coming from a powerful figure. The silvery outlines of the ghosts slowly floated forward toward Zeyla. An evil sneer had made its way up her lips making her face unnerving to look at. Natsu tried to read out and grab their hands, but as soon as his hand came in contact with their spirits, a mist curled around his hand.

Feeling pain, Natsu pulled back to be meet with a surprise.

His hand was blistered with red boils and rashes. Thick pus oozed from the wounds on the palms and wrist. He looked back in terror as the ghosts kept drifting to Zeyla. No one dared stop pus from his hand dripped to the ground, leaving a trail of steam in its contact. The ghost was some sort of poisonous mist.

The ghosts of Levi and Gajeel were now at Zeyla's feet. The bowed down onto their knees, their heads hanging. Their mouths moved, but no sound came out. Instead, they words they had spoken reached Natsu's mind.

"Our master, what is it your wish?"

Zeyla said nothing. She swiped her hand up and their souls twisted as one. They followed a trail into her mouth.

Zeyla blinked once, twice, thrice.

The once whitewash color in her eyes were now a pale purple like the souls she had devoured had replenished some of her life. Grinning, Zeyla began pointing her finger at people. The member of Fairy Tail started to dissipate and crumble like Levi and Gajeel. One by one, each soul was eaten by Zeyla. Each time, her eyes glowed a brighter purple. All that was left were the Master, S-class wizards and a few others.

Lucy, Happy, Wendy and many others were all eaten, all used to reach Zeyla's desired power. Zeyla's eyes were now throbbing, seemingly giving off a harsh purple light.

"Fairy Tail, this is a battle that you lost before it started," Zeyla said, "You have fought back and suffered. Your comrades have disappeared. What now? What shall you do?"

She held up a gold chain. The jade necklace was now complete. With the golden dragon tail firmly wrapped around the precious gem, it glowed an eerie green.

"You will be the first in thousands of years to witness the power of a key to the Gate."

Clasping the necklace on herself, her purple eyes once again changed color. The purple was now gold and her eyes her flickering with a holy light.

"Feel my wrath Fairies!" she shouted.

"Now on my watch!" a voice screamed back.

Gray, who had picked himself off the floor, had a sword in his hand.

 _"Soul Stealer…what a fitting ending."_ Zeyla thought.

Gray rushed towards her, ignore the pain that coursed through his body. Zeyla stood there, not bothering to make a single blade stabbed her in the heart, going clean through her body, the tip covered in her , instead of pain or anger in her eyes, a satisfied smile were on Zeyla's lips, like the blade had not killed her.

A soft sight escaped from her mouth and white mist curled off her body.

The souls.

They separated into smaller pieces returning to the bodies.

Gray turned his gaze back to Zeyla.

The light was fading from her eyes as she looked up at his face. Blood tricked down from the corner of her mouth and her face was paling. Even so, the expression on her face looked like victory.

Her last words breathed out.

"You have not won. The Demons will always demolish the Fairies. This is not the end."

Zeyla's body went limp.


	32. Alive

Zeyla was dead.

Her heart thudded and slowed to a stop, and her eyes glazed over. The final, victorious smile sat etched on her face for eternal time.

Natsu let go of the breath that he found he was holding the entire time. A huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders as soon as he saw that body go limp.

Why though? She was his childhood friend, his first real friend. Why was he so happy? The answer was not clear.

Yet as he saw her body fall to the ground, he felt something else than a spark of joy; a sort of ache in his heart like something he had searched for so long just slipped out of his grasp. What was it? A childhood love perhaps?

Glancing over at Zeyla's guild, he saw not horror nor anger, but rather an understanding look as if her death was a step of progress. The death of her, maybe, was what they wanted all along.

Erza rose from the ground and turned onto Demons Hour, "You have two choices: surrender, or fight to the death. You can see now that we aren't so easy to defeat. Your leader is dead, gone. I wisely suggest that you drop your weapons and surrender."

Instead of rising up their hands like most would do, the second head of the guild only smirked.

"Surrender?", Hikumu softly laughed, "One only surrenders when they are defeated, when they have nowhere to go. My friend, or rather acquaintance, we have just went one step further into our plan, and you, darling, have absolute no power to stop us."

Erza crossed her arms, not quite believing what she was hearing. Their leader and most powerful member of the guild was just stabbed straight through the heart, laying dead on the ground, and they weren't dropping their weapons? What was this?

"Erza Scarlet," Hikumu continued, noticing the visible stiffening of the shoulders when he mentioned her full name, "We demons will always crush the oh-so delicate fairy wings, so you cannot fly up from the ground. Even though it may not seem like it, we are always ahead. _Always._ "

Neo waved his hand, creating a thick fog that filled the entire room. As quick as it came, it disappeared. Demons Hour was gone, but Zeyla's body was still lying on the ground.

Was this mutiny?

Natsu walked over to her body, each step echoing against the ruined walls of the church. Crouching down by Zeyla's body, he gently brushed her silver hair away from her face, revealing her brilliant purple eyes that he had missed.

Putting a finger on her eyelid, he closed her eyes, encasing her beautiful color forever. Feeling something wet on his cheek, he looked up to see gray skies.

"Lucy, is it raining?" he asked, his voice cracking.

"Soon, Natsu. Soon. After all, it only rains on sad days."

* * *

The rain poured down, drenching the red cloaks on the shoulders on Demons Hour. They were headed toward the forest that they had arrived at tin the beginning of the Grand Magic Games.

It was already night as they preferred to travel with the shadows of the evening and midnight. Feeling a huge presence of magic, Akaine and Hikumu stepped in front of the guild and called out.

"Who's there. Come out now."

A soft chuckling rang through the tall trees, the voice bouncing off the trunks.

"My, my, don't recognize me? It's full moon after all. You think that I would leave this world that fast? You know, I thought you knew that on full moons, I am invincible. Must be the dragon's blood. Quite a miracle worker of you ask me."

The tension fell and a figure leaped from the high branches of the old oak, landing in a patch of moonlight.

Zeyla was back and ready.

Spreading out her black wings, she stretched out and grinned, a malicious look on her face.

"Death feels interesting, especially when you're using your life-force to open a portal to another dimension. Apparently, Tenrou Island wasn't enough to make a strong connection. Lucky for this full moon, huh?" Zeyla said.

Hikumu crossed his arms, "I thought you would stay out of sight for a little longer. You know, keep a low profile."

Causally leaning on the tree nearby, she replied, "I couldn't wait. After Edolas is waiting for us."

Neo smiled a bit.

"Edolas?" he asked.

"Yup," Zeyla said proudly, "Remember the work I gave you a few years ago? Guys, we're heading toward Edolas."

* * *

Natsu stood at the door of the hotel with his suit case by his side. Not even bothering to sling it over his shoulders, he dragged it out of the hotel and made his way.

After the death of Zeyla, Demons Hour had vanished, though suspiciously, another guild had won the GMG and took all the winnings. Fairy Tail had been applauded for showing bravery once again and for being the heroes.

But Natsu didn't look like a hero, much less feel like one. He felt terrible, despite the fact that he had just saved the entire world from falling into chaos.

Not watching where he was going, he bumped into someone.

"Sorry," he said, muttering an apology.

"Oh dear," a familiar, annoying voice said, "Somebody does not look well!"

Natsu looked up to see familiar purple hair.

"Devil." He growled.

The Devil spread out his hands like showcasing cards, "The one and only. Now tell me the whole story. After all, a dragon slayer doesn't go moping around like this."

Natsu's eyebrow twitched in anger. He was the Devil for hell's sake! How would he not know what happened considering that Zeyla was, ah, one of his clients! Outrageous!

Pushing past him, he said, "I think you already know."

The Devil popped in front of him and said once again, "Oh, no. No, no ,no, no, no! I'm not asking for details young man. I'm here to make you an offer!"

"And what would I want that you have?" Natsu asked.

The Devil leaned in and whispered in his ear, "Information about Zeyla. She's alive."


	33. Unlocked

Natsu's head pounded at the news he had just heard. Alive? How? He had seen her die right in front of his eyes. As much as he knew this information wasn't probable, a part of him was clinging on the last shred of hop that Zeyla was out there, resurrected from the dead.

The Devil saw the doubt on his face and laughed in amusement. "Don't trust me? I'm the Devil. I see all. In fact, she's on her way to-" he stopped abruptly.

"She's on her way to where?" Natsu demanded, "Where tell me?"

The Devil put on a winning smirk, "I have said too much already. If you want to know, you have to have something in exchange! Ta, ta now! Have a good day!"

With that, he disappeared in cloud of red stained fog. A fading voice echoed within Natsu's ears, "Give me call when you're ready to seal a deal! Tee hee!"

Clenching his fists, Natsu stormed all the way to the station.

* * *

Glaring out the window, Natsu could sense the guild was quiet as they sensed his moodiness. Not even Happy or Gray made a snarky remark. Lucy could sense something besides the fight was brooding in his mind.

"Natsu," Lucy asked softly, hesitating at her words, "Was that…was that the girl in the pictures? Her name, Zeyla?"

Erza, Master, and Gray's eyes darted to Natsu fully knowing his past with her. She was something that broke him besides Igneel. She was the one that left with everyone thinking that she was dead. She was the one they had fought and killed.

Natsu was quiet for a long time, staring out the window, the meadows and pastures reflected in his eyes, mixing with his emotions.

"I think she might still be alive." He said at last in a dead voice.

"Natsu," Erza started, "She can't. We saw her-"

She was cut off by Master, "What makes you think so?" he asked.

Natsu took a deep breath, thinking about the words he was about to say. "I meet with…someone with connections. That person knows everything. He sees everything. You could say he's almost immortal. He told me that she's alive and heading somewhere. That's all know. He refuses to tell me more unless I return a favor or something."

His friends took awhile to digest this. Who would have that power to see all?

"Natsu," Master said, "have you been making deals with the Devil?"

Natsu's head sharply turned in surprise and a bit a fear.

"How did you know?"

Master averted his eyes away from him and took a deep breath, "I had made a few deals with him myself."

 _Flashback_

 _A young man stood at the edge of the hill overlooking Magnolia. His golden blonde hair stood straight up in spikes and his eyebrows were rose high on his forward._

 _It was Master Makarov when he was only a teen._

 _A poof of smoke came before him and mischievous, lanky man was in front of him. With his trademark purple hair, it wasn't hard to tell who he was._

 _Devil had come._

 _"_ _You thought about my suggestion?" Devil asked, knowing well that the only reason he had called out to him was to close the deal they had discussed a week back._

 _Makarov crossed his arms and glared at him._

 _"_ _I thought about the deal. I get stronger in magic to the point of a Ten Wizard Saint by some voodoo thing you do to me and I have to return some favor to you. That was the deal, right?"_

 _Devil cackled at Makarov's greediness, "Indeed! Word for word! You ready to accept?"_

 _Makarov's gaze never wavered from Devil's gleeful face, "What kind of favor?"_

 _Devil playfully tapped his fingers on his chin, "You know, I have some pests in my home in the underworld. You could always clean them out for me. I have a treasure protected by my pets, but sadly, they have turned, ah, haywire, and anything with the taint of evil."_

 _Makarov pondered at this. The Devil was asking him to kill his super powerful pets to get his treasure._

 _"_ _Will you be giving me the powers first?" he asked._

 _The Devil smiled, "Of course. There will be no way you can clear them without with your new power."_

 _Casting a hand over Makarov's head, the Devil closed his eyes and murmured some ancient incantation. All that Makarov could make out was a few bits._

 _Louvri nèf kadna yo vini soti jeyan_

 _He could faintly recognize the language being spoken, but all that Makarov understood was the first part._

 _"_ _Open nine locks?" he thought, "what is he unlocking?"_

 _A burning sensation surged through his limbs and caused him to crumble to the ground. The feeling continued until his entire body felt like it was on fire. Suddenly, it felt like his entire body was dumped into the frigid ocean._

 _It stopped abruptly._

 _The pain was gone, just like that._

 _He could feel a new power that flowed from his heart all the way to his fingertips. He could almost see his entire body glowing._

 _Starting at his fingers, he asked, "What magic do I have now?"_

 _Devil shrugged and gave a secret smile, "I guess you have to find out. I will see to that you will get my treasure for me. Good-bye!"_

 _Devil flicked his hand in the air and the scenery wavered in the air. The buildings and even the air was disappearing._

 _Makarov frantically clawed at the empty space in front of him, "Wait, where are you going? Where am I going?"_

 _"_ _To my home of course! See you in Hell!"_

 _Flashback End_

"So is that how you got your magic?" Erza asked.

Master bowed his head and nodded gravely.

"I do not want to remember what I saw down there. Everywhere I looked…pure fear. Pure horror. Devil's home, if that what he wants to call it…." He trailed off, obviously not wanting to relive the memory.

"I barely managed to get the treasure and return back in one piece. I vowed never to make another deal with him. And I know that deal was close to fair, if not in my favor. I regret making the deal. Out of greed and out of power, I almost lost my will. Had I wanted more, I may have sold my soul to him."

 _Sold his soul._

 _Zeyla sold her soul. No not sold. Bargained, exchange, for my death._

No one noticed the shadowy smile of the purple haired man sitting behind them, listening to every word.

* * *

In the middle of night, thirteen powerful beings gathered in a flat land completely encased by mountains. Thirteen powerful demons.

In the middle was a silver haired girl.

Zeyla.

A confident and cool grin on her face, she stepped to the middle of the field. The rest of the guild followed creating a circle around her.

Raising their hands in the air, they began to chant.

 _Gatekeeper of different worlds_

 _Between magic and time_

 _Between human and spirits_

 _Bring us to the other side_

 _Let us flow freely through the gate_

 _Bring us to Edolas_

Heavy storm clouds formed above the mountains and began swirling in a circle. Thunder could be heard rolling across the skies and lightning flashed against the heavens. The wind pulled up to near hurricane force, ripping leaves from the ancient tree branches, whipping around the red cloaks and the lone white one.

Suddenly, a deafening crack pierced through the eerie howl of the wind and a bright, blue light zapped down forming a connection between the ground and the never-ending sky. A bright ball of energy formed around the top of the light sending crackles of lighting in a frenzy.

The portal to Edolas was complete.

An earsplitting snap exploded from the center of the light and in that single moment, the guild that had been standing there was now gone.

The clouds closed up and the night returned to its peaceful behavior.

There was no sign that a portal had been opened. No sign that an entire guild had left this world

* * *

A white holy light shone down on a floating, rocky island. The air wavered in the intense heat, bending the vision of what was behind it. Thirteen people completely covered in cloaks materialized in the light and stepped forward.

Scanning the surroundings, the single white cloaked one walked ahead and announced, "We made it, my demons. We're in Edolas."

A/N

This is the last chapter of the first book. Yes sad . . .

The sequel will be posted here as soon as I finish it on quotev. It's called Reflection and if you don't want to wait for me to post it here, then just search up reflection fairy tail quotev and it should pop up. My first sort of edited version of Demons Hour is also on that account, so if you do want to read that then feel free.

I love you all and thank you for reading this story. Hugs and kisses to you :D


	34. Trailer and Special

watch?v=dTlVQ7ySl84

Trailer is up there. I was a bit hesitant to put it here. Originally, this story was published on another platform (quotev) and I just wanted to put it here as a means of reaching out to a broader audience. Sequel will be put up if there is enough interest :D

And for those who have subbed and suddenly wondered why the hell I'm posting: I've been going through a lot of files of my fanfics (spring cleaning of sorts?) and decided to refresh this page a bit. Below is a special I originally posted for the 50,000+100,000 reads I hit on the other platform, but I decided to share it here as well. Please enjoy :)

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She had always wondered where she had gone wrong. In this world, she knew she would be considered a force of evil. Zeyla wasn't oblivious. She heard the glares and whispers. She saw the wanted posters. She saw the amount of jobs that offered insane amounts of money for her head.

But to her, doing this was nothing.

In this case, _this_ was a mission to infiltrate a relatively new guild called Sabertooth.

One thing Zeyla had to complain about was the name. Sure, it was better than Fairy Tail. What kind of normal person thought that fairies had _tails?_ Fairies had wings. Logic, duh.

But Sabertooth? In a way it did make sense. Sabers had big teeth, but that's where Zeyla got confused. A saber tooth tiger looked extremely dumb with its teeth hanging out of its mouth. For all she knew, it could trip on its own teeth. And she didn't see how the teeth were even effective.

So much for intimidating. It just made them look silly.

Neo had collected a bit of info on them and Zeyla had decided to pay them a visit before they headed toward Tenrou Island. There was a treasure, so she heard, that was be pretty useful in helping them with this whole Gate quest.

And so this was the reason they were in Firore cloak-less and in broad daylight, something that the guild had rarely done.

Of course, some were enjoying it. Akaine was hopping around, being immature and loud, her arms spread out, obviously soaking in the sunlight.

Hikumu, on the other hand, reflected the mood very similar to her's.

He was a Night God slayer. He worked with the shadows and moon and all things doom and gloomy. He could infiltrate your mind and pull out the worst nightmare, one of the aspects of night.

Oh how he despised the bright sun.

Unless it suddenly exploded and made it start raining fireballs down on Earthland. Then, and only then, would he not mind the sun.

As Zeyla walked past a fruit stand and caught glimpse of the wanted posters, she had to hold back a laugh. They had identified her as man with black hair and purple eyes standing over seven feet tall. And they drawn Umie with bright red hair claiming that she used water magic.

Boy, these people were clueless.

And because of that, Demons Hour was able to walk around freely because the weren't expecting a five foot six inch girl with white hair and purple eyes to be the leader of one of the most ruthless dark guilds, so scary that mothers replaced the boogie monster with her.

Or him. Whatever.

She walked over to the front of the guild, her eyes sharp as she surveyed the building. The banner in the front hanging would be either useful or annoying in the escape process. Narrow glass windows on the side was not a good sign for the whole plan. They could crash through and hope for the best, but it wasn't a clean opening. The front doors would have to be the best route. It was the most open unlike back doors which Zeyla and the others found to be guarded or full of drunk mages sleeping off the beer from last night's celebrations.

She gently raised her hand to tell the rest of her guild to fall back. Only a light twitch from her finger told Hikumu to follow her. Their looks would be enough to pass them off as siblings and their magic was similar.

Casting a quick spell, she changed both their bodies into one of a child. Zeyla looked the same as she was years ago in Fairy Tail. Hikumu's body was also quite close to when Zeyla had first met him in the forest.

They walked forward, their tiny legs in quick pace to cover as much ground as possible. This would be a quick in and out mission.

Slowly pulling open the doors of the guild hall, Zeyla whispered into Hikumu's ear, "Play it simple. Act cocky, but not to piss off the master. We want to pass off as powerful, but not disrespectful."

Hikumu smirked back at her and replied, "You know I'm good at that."

Rolling her eyes, Zeyla sarcastically said, "Yeah, because you don't do that to me on a daily basis."

No more words exchanged between them as they walked in Sabertooth. Voices dropped into murmurs as members saw unfamiliar faces enter. Zeyla kept her head high and glared at anyone who gave point or laugh.

The pair made it to the end of the hall and stood in front of a throne. A man with a graying beard and a Sabertooth stamp on his forehead sat back in the seat scanning Zeyla and Hikumu up and down.

But it wasn't that move that made her silently curse under her breath.

Another pair of kids stood beside them. One had bright tuffs of blonde hair sticking up in random directions. Bright, electric blue eyes accompanied his crazy hair. The other was quite the opposite. Black hair hung over eyes that Zeyla couldn't see. A dark aura came off of him as if a rain cloud was constantly over his head.

The master spoke up after Zeyla exchanged a quick glance at the other pair.

"It seems like there's some competition here."

Zeyla cautiously sniffed the air as he spoke. The treasure was here all right, but she couldn't tell where. Also, the scent was a bit off like it was mixed with something.

Something quite familiar.

 _Dragon Slayer._

The smell was laced with a dragon scent . Whoever had the treasure that would help unlock the Gate was a dragon slayer. She tasted the air once more. Both of the boys were Dragon Slayers, no doubt about that, but which one was it?

 _Zeyla, they both have one._

Her eyes widened as Hikumu sent her the message. After a double check, it was blatantly obvious. They both had that _something._

"Well," Jiemma started, "We can't have four people join the guild. Only the best of the best can join. It's one of your groups, not both. One of you may surrender, or we can pull out a winner another way."

The boy with blonde hair cracked his knuckles and smiled in anticipation, "I'm not backing down. No way! If I win, I can impress Natsu and show how powerful I am."

The one with black mumbled back some words that she couldn't pick up.

Jiemma rumbled in cold laughter, "Very well. All four of you, take this outside. Whoever comes back in walking can join."

Zeyla needed no more. She and Hikumu stormed outside with a flourish. (She always had to walk in style.) with the other boys trailing awkwardly behind them.

To the open grassy area they stood facing each other. Zeyla seized the boys. Dragon slayer against dragon slayer. Well, more in her case, but she would have to restrict herself to one type of magic. She was, after all, disguising as kid. Anything more and her cover would be blown. No kid would have the power to blow half the earth into smithereens.

But them again, that would take about six hours of writing, chanting, and extreme exhaustion. And she still had the possibility of killing herself.

A gust of wind blew her hair in her eyes and she was blinded for a moment. In that span of time, the opposing boys sprung at her, knowing she couldn't see.

Zeyla didn't even flinch.

With a flick of her wrists, boiling hot water sprung from her hand and slapped away the pair. She grabbed the blonde by the wrist and body-slammed him to the ground. Then picking him up by the arm, she picked him from the ground and swung him around, hitting his partner.

She then stood back waiting for the next attack. Taking them out at once was no fun. Hikumu was at her side, sitting in the tall grass, doing nothing, his eyes closed. Daydreaming, Zeyla thought amused. He would snap out of it later.

She focused back on the boys. "I never got your names," she said to them.

The blonde frowned at her, "No need to know. We're gonna blow your head so hard, you won't remember. We brothers will always win."

Brothers huh. They did not look alike at all.

"Brothers eh?" Zeyla retorted, "Well my brother doesn't like losing either."

The one with black snorted, "Yeah, because laying down and sleeping is going to . . ." his voice started to trail as his eyes no longer saw the sleeping body.

Then, he started to choke. The blonde whirled around wildly looking for the source. With a strangled yell he leapt at Zeyla, his eyes burning with fury.

"You, you... STOP IT NOW. YOU COULD KILL HIM."

Zeyla easily avoided him by stepping aside. She then shot water over his feet which froze instantaneously, pinning his movements.

He struggle against the ice and stabbed the ice over and over with his magic. (White, Zeyla noted. Probably light.)

Rolling her eyes she said, "I'm not doing anything." She pointed to the other boy, "Take a good look. Behind."

Hikumu was standing behind the black-haired boy with a void of pure blackness held at his throat. It was slowly cutting through the flesh of his neck, the blood dripping down and staining his shirt.

"Stop please," the blonde whimpered, "You win. Just stop."

Giving a glare at the boy, Zeyla couldn't believe the boy. Just a few spots of blood, bruises, and a tiny burn from her water and he was down? Sighing, she waved off Hikumu and he dropped the unconscious body down to the ground. Jiemma had been outside the entire time watching and Zeyla smiled at this news.

Sure, these kids had some kind of item they needed on them, but the treasure they were looking for was with them.

It was that big fat red necklace hanging ever so temptingly on the guild master's chest.

Zeyla walked up to him and looked him straight in the eye and said curtly, "We won."

Jiemma chuckled, "I saw."

"Are we in?"

"Not yet."

Zeyla's eye twitched angrily at the news.

"You still have to beat my daughter."

This old man had a daughter? The hell? A girl a little older then them (their age as children of course) walked from the table she had once had been sitting at.

Zeyla looked at Hikumu. Their time limit was running up. They had no choice.

"Ready to go out with a bang?" she asked him.

Hikumu nodded, "Ready. Let's get it and get the fuck out of here."

He sprung forward and lashed out his foot. His foot ripped the throat of the mage that was standing next to him with inhumane strength. Without missing a beat, he grabbed the now dead man by the ankle and threw it at the daughter of Jiemma with incredible speed. The girl had no time to react and was sent to the floor with a crack. Zeyla estimated two broken ribs, smashed fingers, and a twisted ankle.

Picking up after Hikumu, she flipped over the table, the metal legs flinging wildly into the crowd impaling many in the shoulder or arm. Using someone's body, she flung herself at Jiemma. Jiemma raised his hands, preparing to cast a spell.

Not a chance.

She punched him square in the nose and ripped off his necklace. Blood squirted out of the wound on his face as he tumbled back from the force.

Zeyla extended her fingernails with hot water and started to claw at his body. The water shredded his clothes and sliced his body, leaving burn marks in its trail.

Hikumu, on the other hand, simply walked around the guild, everyone falling on their knees screaming in fear. Eyes rolled back to show white and moans rippled through the air. Their worst nightmare was in front of them,

As Zeyla and Hikumu surveyed the destruction, Zeyla swiftly moved over to the blonde boy and gave him a kick in the stomach.

"That is how you fight. No matter how many people there. No matter how powerful they are. No matter how injured you are or how much of a disadvantage you are at. That is how you win. You better learn from this."

She then walked away, but before she exited from the wrecked building, she paused and asked over her shoulder, "I never got your name, you know."

The blonde boy hesitated then answered, "Sting. Sting Eucliffe."

Zeyla nodded and then disappeared, the shadows sucking her up.

" _Sting Eucliffe,"_ she mused to herself, _"I will remember your name."_

 _I assure you, I won't forget._


End file.
